Doof Escapes!
by legomaster00156
Summary: In the Second Dimension, the Doofenshmirtzes have been firmly locked up. When they break out, though, pandemonium does the same. The resistance, now buffed with new members, must solve the case of who broke them out, while fighting for their lives.
1. The Resistance

"Isabella, come on!"

The command came from a burly young person with teeth better described as tusks. He suddenly noticed a Norm-Bot (oh, how he hated them) lining up a shot. He spit out the gum be had been chewing, into the gun. It backfired and exploded, as Buford popped another piece of Tuff Gum into his mouth.

"Nice shot," the boy beside him complimented. The cropped red hair and ingenius laser gun in his hands revealed his obvious identity as Phineas. His twin, Ferb, said nothing, instead turning his waist to fire at a different Norm-Bot.

At this point, Isabella had caught up and used Buford as nothing more than a hurtle to leap ahead.

"This is so weird!" she yelled, "We made sure Doofenshmirtz was securely locked up, and the bots disabled! Gretchen even ran all of the scans!" Ferb shrugged.

"Where are we running to, anyway?" Phineas asked, taking another shot and knocking out another Norm-Bot.

"The Old Abandoned Warehouse," Isabella answered, "Candace has arranged a rendevous with Katie, Milly, and Jeremy."

"And the other Firestorms?" Phineas asked.

"Gretchen is running control with 'Jeet. We've got Holly and Ginger in the lighthouse as lookouts - thanks for the advanced telescopes, guys - and Adyson is with Agent P."

"You're still sure he's safe to be around?" Buford asked, still suspicious of the once-evil platyborg.

"No, no I'm not," Isabella admitted, "But Adyson's not alone. You remember the new recruit?"

"Melissa, right? Yeah, I know her. Passed your tests with flying colors, or so you said," Buford said, before turning around and producing a rocket launcher from nowhere. He locked, loaded, and blasted a gaping hole in the robots chasing them in a mere five seconds. "What about her?"

"If P tries anything at all, I've concealed tranquilizer darts on her. She's right there with Adyson," Isabella said.

"Didn't 'Jeet say his mechanical features give Perry extraordinary defense against mundane weapons and poisons?" Phineas asked, raising an eyebrow. Personally, he trusted his pet, but even he recognized why Isabella wouldn't take chances.

"Well, yes-" Isabella said, interrupting herself by grabbing a hand-blaster and a grenade from her shoulder-slung ammo belt. "And that's why we didn't make a mundane weapon or poison. These are specifically designed to slip past P's defenses."

"And if they fail?" Ferb asked, in a rare event of showing he was not mute.

"Let's just say, we can really, really hope they don't fail. That mace-hand is a heck of a hitter," Isabella said.

She then released the grenade at the Norm-Bots. Not one for waiting, she fired her blaster at it with pinpoint acuracy, detonating it immediately. The group had all but vanished at this point, and the few remaining bots fled to seek reinforcements.

"Good, a break," Phineas said, relieved. He took off his own ammo sleeve, mostly consisting of highly volatile energy packs for the blasters. "Lock and load, everybody. It's still a good two miles to the rendevous point, and we don't want to go into a fight unprepared."

By this point, yeah, you've probably figured it out. I'm Isabella... but not the one you know. See, I'm the rebel; the one who fought with and led the Firestorm Girls. While our "most esteemed supreme ruler", Doofenshmirtz, was attempting to take over the first dimension, Candace led us to take some of the pressure off of the second one. With Phineas' and Ferb's help and gadgeteering genius, we had all but reclaimed the Tri-State Area by the time Doof had the nerve to come back here again.

We locked him up nice and pretty. Well, that didn't last long. Just a week ago, he broke out - the cameras couldn't pick up anything, but we suspect outside aid - as well as his oh-so-dear daughter, Vanessa. Ugh, I can't stand her. And the way Ferb looks at her... you'd think he had a crush! I mean, how can he like her? She's evil! And all of us are good! Candace is good! I'm good! Doesn't he care about my- our feelings?

*cough* Anyway, he somehow rebooted the Norm-Bot systems (we'd sent them all to the Danville Scrapyard). And now the resistance is resisting again. It's wierd, but I'm kind of relieved. I mean, sitting around and doing nothing? Bo-ring!

Phineas' and Ferb's secret agent platypus has been helping us out, but I can't shake the feeling that Doof would have a trick up his sleeve to make him evil again... or maybe he's not good at all. I dunno. The Firestorm Girls and I have been ready for emergencies this whole time, and our new recruit, Melissa, is one wicked- you know what, I won't finish that sentence. Oh, yeah, and Buford decided to stop resisting us, so he's in, too.

And, of course, we have less elite recruits. There's this artist kid named Jango, or something. He's not too much on the offensive front, but he's pretty flexible, in more ways than one. And that's ignoring his creativity, outmatched only by the twins. Suzy Johnson, Jeremy's sickeningly sweet sister, is in training to join the Firestorms, but I'm not placing bets on her passing the rigorous entry tests. Irving is about as annoying a kid as you can find, but he's good with surveillance and espionage. I guess he works off his obnoxiousness around accomplices. Some girl named Lacey joined. She and Candace really hit it off, but I think there are better people to choose as friends out there. Lacey was a friend of Vanessa, after all. I think that about covers the newbies, but if I missed any, you'll probably meet them later on.

This story won't be written from my point of view. I'll only interject with bits of commentary here and there. Anyway, let's cut to the chase. No, wait, we already did that. And kicked their butts. Let's cut to AFTER the chase.

"Ah, you're here at last," Candace said, with her elbows crossed and an unpleased expression on her face.

"Sorry, sis. We were chased," Phineas admitted.

"So, what evidence did you leave of our current location?" Candace asked, not even bothering with the question of whether they left evidence at all.

"You can follow the blast trails for miles," Buford said, smirking. "Most of it was me, of course."

"Pft, liar," Isabella scoffed, rolling her eyes, "Most of the blast marks are from you, yeah, but Ferb and I were the ones who took out the most Norm-Bots. Right, Ferb?"

Ferb shook his head, pointing at Buford. He quickly pulled out a tally sheet, which noone had seen him using, with the grand totals of the number of robots destroyed by every member of the resistance. Even those who weren't with them. And, true enough, Buford had over 60 robots on his marks.

"Listen, there's no time," Candace said, rolling her eyes. She was as serious as ever. "Status report on current equipment, now."

"We used all ammo for Buford's rocket launcher, as well as half my explosives. The sedation needles are still intact. No sign of P's rebellion, but Melissa's on-hand with Adyson," Isabella reported.

"Hmm... we've got a bit of ammo for rocket launchers in the warehouse. Phineas, how long does it take to make more?" Candace demanded, as Buford ran in to reequip himself.

"Give us a few hours - 5, give or take - and we can make enough for about 50 blasts, easy," Phineas said.

"We'll work on it tomorrow, once we're secure at the house. Energy packs?" Candace continued.

"We have plenty. Enough for the whole resistance to fight for a month," Isabella answered, "If we can get our hands on more of the Norm-bots' booster packs, there's no telling how long we can keep this up."

"That's great," Candace said, though, as usual, her voice carried little emotion. "Django just called in. He and Coltrane have taken control of Manufactory #396. That's one less factory spewing out robots."

"Have we been able to contact the First Dimension?" Phineas asked.

"Nope. Way too much power involved. If we can capture a few more manufactories, maybe 20 or so, we might be able to run the Dimension Hopper. Until then, we're on our own," Candace said.

"Attention! Come in, Isabella!" a radio clipped to Isabella's side squawked, "Come in, Isabella! Over."

"Yes, what is it? Who is speaking? Over," Isabella responded, holding the radio to her face.

"This is Ginger. Norm-Bots spotted advancing from Manufactory #88. Currently headed for lighthouse. Please send reinforcements. Over," the voice replied.

"Approximate strength? Over."

"Estimated at 230 strong. Far too many for a mere two Firestorms. Over," Ginger answered.

"We'll be right there. Over," Isabella replied. She waited a few moments. "I said over." A few more moments of silence.

"Alright, move out," Candace ordered, "Milly, stay behind and keep a lookout. Call Coltrane and Django. Tell them to meet us at the lighthouse, and bring plenty of explosives." By this time, Buford had returned, already looking ready for a fight. "Make sure to tell them that they have to compete with Buford for biggest explosions."

"Yes, sir!" Milly exclaimed, saluting as the others departed.

The group found the lighthouse area in chaos. Norm-Bots were everywhere. Holly, on ground level, had tiny devices she was throwing at every Norm-Bot in sight. They were her own invention. They were actually tiny mechanical spiders, which would burrow into the robots and chew away at wiring and controls. The downside was that they generally blew up with the Norm-Bots.

Ginger, meanwhile, had stayed at top floor, where she used martial arts almost rivaled by Candace's own to beat off any who flew up. The ones that dared to fly up usually found themselves without a head.

Irving had intercepted the call to Isabella (his espionage skills were, in some cases, quite annoying), and was there as well. He had a set of electric nunchuks. Yes, you heard that right. Even if the nunchuks themselves didn't destroy the robots, the electric charges would. Of course, seeing as they ran at over 30,000 volts of power, it was a wonder Irving hadn't killed himself with them.

The group leaped into action. Candace produced a grappling gun, shooting it to the top floor. As she zoomed upwards with one hand, she used the other to punch out nearby hovering Norm-Bots. Isabella, Phineas, and Ferb took to distanced combat, shooting and vanishing behind cover quickly and quietly. Buford, not being one for tactics, ran into the fray, screaming, for whatever reason, "Leerrrroooyyyy JEEEENKIIINNNSSS!" Isabella almost thought his brain had snapped, but then realized that it's hard to snap something the size of a pea.

Katie's specialty was a bit different. She preferred melee combat, drawing two knives from sheathes at her side. She pressed buttons on the bottoms of the handles, causing them to coarse with the same electricity that ran through Irving's nunchuks. She sliced and ran her way through the robot blockade to join the side of Holly, who was beginning to be overwhelmed with the numbers.

"Holly, how many Spiders do you have left?" Katie asked, running a knife through a nearby bot. They continued taking out Norm-Bots, even as they conversed.

"At this point? Probably less than 30," Holly said, obviously unnerved. "Thanks for arriving so quickly. Milly stayed behind?"

"Candace's orders. Warehouse needed a guard," Katie explained. "I'm not worried about her. That place is surrounded with so many alarms and traps, no robot can possibly get through. Not even a half-organic one."

"Yeah, yeah, P's not to be trusted," Holly said, rolling her eyes. "Say, are those the twins over there?"

"Yeah. Chief, too," Katie said, "They don't like getting up-close and personal."

"I don't, either," Holly admitted. "Hey, Buford!" Buford ignored the girl, as he pummeled his way through the robots. "And... he's gone. He doesn't like to stop moving, does he?"

"Take the best adrenaline rush you've ever had, multiply it by 100, and you'll almost be at what he feels every single fight," Katie said, grinning.

Meanwhile, Candace and Ginger were still at the top floor. Ginger leaped into the air and kicked a Norm-Bot into the wall, and Candace shot it while it was stunned. They stayed silent and focused. Ginger was possibly the only one who was as consistently focused on completing tasks as Candace was, making them excellent partners. Irving had joined them, though, and his mouth more than made up for any lack of noise on the part of either girl.

"Hah! Take that! And that! And- ow!" Irving had barely brushed his skin with his own nunchuks, recieving a shock as a warning. Candace turned to shoot at a Norm-Bot who had almost exploited the second of distraction.

"Watch it, Irving. This is a fight, not a game," Candace ordered harshly.

"I'm fine, I promise!" Irving said back, twirling the nunchuks around to whack another robot.

"You won't be for long if you keep that up," Candace muttered, before going back to focus on the task at hand.

By the time Django and Coltrane arrived, the group was exhausted. Jeremy had cleaned out the inside of the lighthouse while the others fought those outside, but more and more kept coming. Holly had ran out of Spiders ages ago, relying on a hand-blaster to do what damage she could. Therefore, Django and Coltrane's own Spiders were appreciated when they delivered them to her.

Django had, possibly, the oddest weapon of anyone there. A paintbrush. His gun's energy packs had been depleted in the manufactory takeover. He resorted to painting over the Norm-Bots' faces, ruining their accuracy and making them a far more dangerous hazard to their allies than the resistance. His flexibility and small size allowed him to weave through enemy formations with ease, and Isabella broke off to join him.

Coltrane and Jeremy had paired up, both sporting fairly large-sized guns, but still nothing compared to what Buford gleefully ran around with.

"So, heard from your imaginary friend recently?" Jeremy teased.

"Stacy's not imaginary," Coltrane grumbled. "I find messages from her in my pack every morning. I don't know who she is, or why she's so interested in me, rather than Candace."

"Didn't you say she claimed to be a rebel outside of the resistance?" Jeremy asked.

"That's right. And she's real good at sneaking. I stayed up all night once, watching my bag. She never showed up, and my bag still had a letter in it," Coltrane said, scratching his head as a break formed in the formations of the enemy. "It's weird."

"Have you checked your bag for devices she may be teleporting them in with?" Jeremy asked.

"Thoroughly, though I didn't expect anything, anyway. The resistance is the only organization with the brains to make anything of the sort," Coltrane said.

"Huh. Well, I trust you to be telling the truth," Jeremy said, nodding.

"Hey, they're retreating!" Katie suddenly yelled, hurling a dagger at a fleeing Norm-Bot. It hit it's mark, as she leaped and stabbed through another. She retrieved the dagger from the robot's back, before switching them off and sheathing them.

Candace and Ginger were down in no time, carrying a groaning Irving.

"Did they get him?" Isabella asked.

"No, he got himself. Warned him the weapon choice was stupid," Candace said, rolling her eyes. "He'll be fine with a bit of treatment. Let's get the whole resistance regrouped at the house. We've got stuff to catch up on."


	2. Doof n' Doof

The entire resistance had gathered at the underground bunker beneath the neighborhood. Elsie, another new resistance member, was in a corner, treating Irving. Candace and Isabella were on a dais, looking over the group.

"Manufactory #396 was a victory," Gretchen reported from behind a computer. "But a small one. As it turns out, they had been preparing to shut it down anyway, about the same time we began planning the attack."

"Gah! That's annoying!" Coltrane exclaimed, "We went through a whole manufactory for no reason?"

"Perhaps we should've gotten more intel before sending Coltrane and I in," Django suggested.

"Well, it hardly matters now," Melissa said. "How'd the lighthouse go?"

"They retreated, thankfully," Ginger reported, with the same lack of emotion in her voice that was portrayed by Candace. "Estimates are at 200 destroyed. Ferb, could we get exact numbers?" Ferb looked at his chart, now transferred to a data pad. He stood up and magnified the numbers. "Correction. Exact tally stands at 198."

"That's a lot of Norm-Bots," Milly said, "It leaves only about 20,000 remaining."

"Ugh! We need to go on a manufactory rush, Candace!" Isabella urged, "We have to secure enough power for the Dimension Hopper, so we can get help from the First Dimension!"

"No good without more intel," Baljeet said regretfully, "We don't know the exact numbers of guards. Certainly, we could send the entire resistance and secure them one at a time. But Doofenshmirtz is not stupid. He will catch on."

"I've been thinking about him recently," Lacey suddenly said, "He gave up evil after his 'choo-choo' was returned. I think it may be Vanessa who's in power here."

"Right. Ya' wanna call her and congratulate her?" Isabella asked, venom in her voice. Candace delivered a quick slap to the back of Isabella's head. Isabella would've normally reacted by breaking ther arm of whoever touched her, but she merely sighed.

"Hey, I'm sorry for having been friends with her!" Lacey said, holding her hands in the air. "I've reformed, geez!"

"Anyway, I agree with the notion of Vanessa holding a higher position of authority this time around. While perhaps not the ultimate enemy, it would probably be a good idea to find her, capture her, question her, and detain her," Candace said.

"Step one is complete," Baljeet said, "Her antidetection devices were particularly hard to get past."

"But- we- you just-" Isabella stammered.

"Alright, 'Jeet, where is she?" Holly asked.

"Dr. Baljeet," Baljeet corrected sternly.

"Yeah, whatever, 'doctor'," Holly bit back.

"She is surrounded by a small patrol of Norm-Bots at FEH," Baljeet said, "That would be nothing serious, but there is another human with her."

"Uh... FEH?" Isabella repeated.

"FEH. Freight Emergency Harbor?" Baljeet explained, making it sound like the most obvious thing in the world.

"Riiiight... Ok, we'll need some of the best members in the resistance on this mission. Candace?" Isabella prompted.

"Myself. Isabella. Phineas. Ferb. And- hey, where's Perry?" Candace suddenly looked alert as she scanned the room for the platyborg. The other resistance members also scanned the room.

"Oh, there you are, Perry!" Phineas suddenly called. The platyborg had merely been oiling his joints, and he now stood saluting Candace.

"Very well. Perry, you're coming, too," Candace ordered. "Let's move, before she does."

The team arrived on the roof overlooking FEH. There were Norm-Bots patrolling the ground level. Vanessa wasn't technically "with" a human: she was interrogating one. She was a teenager, looked to be of Asian descent, and was tied up with several weapon parts strewn across the ground around her.

"My patience is wearing. Where are the other members of your resistance?" Vanessa demanded.

"I need not tell you. You've found all of them," the girl replied, steel in her voice.

"Useless! Little! Weasel!" Vanessa yelled, slapping the girl's cheek with each word. The girl simply smirked. "Where are they?"

"Fine. If you're so intent on finding the other members of my resistance, you can do so in the dump. It fits you well, doesn't it?" the girl asked.

"Is she trying to get herself killed?" Phineas whispered urgently, as they ducked below a wall to avoid being spotted. Ferb simply pulled out a blaster.

"I agree with Ferb on this one," Candace said, "Let's get her out of there." They grabbed their weapons and popped their heads up...

And there were ropes on the ground, blaster holes in every single Norm-Bot, and an unconscious Vanessa leaned against a wall. The girl was nowhere to be seen. They were speechless.

"Yep. The best members of the resistance were totally necessary on this mission," Isabella said sarcastically. "It took her how long to escape?"

"15 seconds, by my count," Phineas said after a pause.

"Well, grab her and let's go. Our mission is accomplished. Now, where's P?" Isabella asked.

"Probably headed back to base when he realized there was nothing to do," Phineas said, trusting of Perry.

"We'll check when we get there," Candace said.

Meanwhile, in the lava chamber beneath Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated, Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz was chained up on the solitary platform, guarded sleeplessly by a patrol of 5 Norm-Bots. There was no vicious monster trying to eat him, but if he got any hungrier, he thought he might eat himself.

"I demand you let me out," he said hoarsely.

"Order overrided," the Norm-Bot closest to him said.

"I'm your master! I demand to... be... let out." Heinz dissolved into a hacking fit. "Or at least give me food and water."

"Orders overrided," the Norm-Bot responded. "You still have 4 hours, 36 minutes, and 14 seconds before your next meal is delivered."

"This is a lava chamber! Where I doomed my prisoners! Who locked me in here?" Heinz pleaded.

"That would be Mistress Vanessa Doofenshmirtz, age 16, race human," the Norm-Bot answered.

"Yes, yes, I know who she is," Heinz said. "But why did she have me locked in here? And how did she make you so competent?"

"Those are questions I am not permitted to answer," the Norm-Bot told the doctor.

"And I suppose it would be too much to hope that you kept the secret escape passage unguarded?" Heinz asked. Suddenly, the face of the robot shifted to that of the killer robots on the hunt.

"Tell me where to find the passage or be destroyed," it ordered. Heinz smirked.

Vanessa woke up tied to an electric chair, the cords running to a power box. Baljeet sat behind a screen, monitoring the controls. The Firestorm Girls surrounded her, Candace and Isabella in front.

"Had a nice nap?" Candace asked.

"Could've been better," Vanessa responded coldly. "So, this is her way of introducing me to your little resistance, huh?"

"Oh, no, this was our own plan," Isabella answered, "Now, then. We will ask you questions, and you will answer."

"Funny. When I was last awake, I was on the other side of the interrogation," Vanessa said.

"Ah, yes, but you had incompetent bots and ropes. We have Firestorm Girls and an electric chair, to which you are bound using our sashes. Said sashes are strengthened to two times the strength of kevlon," Isabella boasted proudly.

"So, where's the weasel?" Vanessa asked.

"What? Little? Weasel?" Isabella asked, pressing the words with slaps to the cheek as Vanessa herself had done. "We ask the questions here. You wasted your chance."

"Yeah, whatever. What'cha got for me?" Vanessa asked.

"Alright, we'll keep it simple for a cooperative captive. We need to know where Heinz is, why he's taking over again, what place you hold in this scheme, how the Norm-Bots reactivated, and we need every manufactory shut down. That's not too bad, is it?" Candace asked.

"Is that all? Pft. Heinz is in the lava chamber of DEI. He has nothing to do with this. I'm in charge. The Norm-Bots reactivated because I told my associate to reactivate them. And, no, I won't shut down the manufactories. You guys are causing enough trouble taking them over," Vanessa said. "Can I go now?"

"Oh, you deluded woman," Candace sighed, rolling her eyes. "You just admitted to being in charge of the whole army, and you think we'll let you go? Baljeet, give her a shock."

Baljeet seemed uneasy about it, but he complied, turning a dial behind the screen. Vanessa gritted her teeth as for about 30 seconds, many volts of electricity shocked her. It wasn't near enough to kill her, though.

"So, you torture your captives, too, huh?" Vanessa asked, after Baljeet had shut off the device. "I like your style. Why don't you work with me? We could use some more evil minds."

"I am not evil!" Candace yelled, slapping Vanessa far harder than Isabella had. "I fight for freedom and justice!"

"Hehe... we're not fighting, are we?" Vanessa asked, recovering from the hit.

"You're truly twisted," Candace growled, "You're going to be locked in our most secure cell, for your entire life. How do you like the sound of that?"

"Oh, that's a great idea. Who's gonna guard me? One of your pretty little Fireside Girls?" Vanessa mocked.

"FireSTORM Girls!" Isabella yelled back.

"Or maybe a hulking brute who would be more than happy to let me go free, just to see an explosion? Or maybe you will think me so important a captive that you will personally-"

"You're going to be guarded by Lacey," Candace said firmly. Vanessa's eyes went wide.

"That traitorous-" Vanessa began.

"Mind your mouth, or we may have to shock speech away from you," Candace said, "Take her to the maximum security cell, girls."


	3. Falling Twice

_Hi, it's me again: Isabella. I would love to say that with Vanessa captured, life went back to normal. But, as you should know, things are never that easy. First of all, the Norm-Bots went frantic with the loss of "Mistress Vanessa". They're even more dangerous than usual. Elsie, the resistance medic, was captured on a supply run. Until things calm down, any kind of normally-dangerous mission (ya' know, rescue missions, manufactory runs, the works) is now frankly suicidal in a group of less than 5._

_So, the loss of a medic is bad, especially since Irving refuses to give up his stupid choice of weaponry for something more practical. But that isn't all. Ferb decided to pay daily visits to Vanessa and Lacey in the maximum security cellblock. I don't know what's wrong with him._

_Oh, and if you want really bad news, just check out what happened this morning..._

"What did you say, Ferb?" Candace demanded, shocked at the news she just recieved.

"I said, Vanessa is gone. Lacey is unconscious in the cell block, and the door is open," Ferb answered plainly.

"I'll organize the Firestorms," Isabella said without missing a beat. She ran off, leaving the twins and Candace alone.

"Phineas, get Perry and get a bird's-eye view of the city. Ferb, come with me. We're going to grab Buford and check the DEI building," Candace ordered.

"It's heavily guarded. All past attempts failed. Even Irving can't sneak in," Ferb pointed out.

"We're not sneaking. Does Buford sound like the sneaky type?" Candace asked. Ferb remained silent.

Scene cut...

"Code red. Resistance members identified," the guarding Norm-Bot at the main entrance to the DEI building alerted. "Now sending mass warni-"

It was cut off as a blaster shot tore it's head off. Candace was equipped with a sniper rifle-like blaster, and a metal quarterstaff slung across her back. She had about a dozen energy packs on an ammo belt, and two more blasters in holsters on said belt.

Ferb was dressed more subtly, with several small guns strewn across his person. He had used the "mad folding skills" inherited from his First Dimension version to store graphs and charts in various well-hidden pockets. He kept a blowtorch on his ammo belt alongside the energy packs, among other useful tools.

And Buford was the most visible presence on the field of battle, along with the deliverer of the well-aimed shot at the guard. As usual, he had his rocket launcher held in one hand, lifting it wish ease unnatural for the size of the weapon. The other hand held a large, yet accurate, pistol. He was the one carrying the explosives, ranging from grenades to smoke bombs and everything in between.

"Good shot, Buford. Let's move," Candace said, as the group rushed at the main entrance. Candace took in the security measures around the main entrance as they came within fifty feet of it. It didn't last long, though, as Buford casually shot an alarm system to disable it.

"Keep going. No other alarms around this area," he said.

The party were fortunate that no other Norm-Bots had been in the immediate area, and they shot down all present Norm-Bots upon running through the doors. They hopped into the elevator, which, as a safety measure, did not ascend to the top floor. They went to the second-highest floor it could reach, knowing that guards would be heavy if they went the full extent of the elevator.

They did not expect what they found. Calling the elevator itself was a white mechanical body with lanky red arms. Attached to the armor as a head of sorts was a balloon, with a frighteningly cheerful face on it. Two simple poles were crossed on it's back. They ducked behind it, readying their weapons.

"Well, hello," the robot said. The voice came from speakers on it's shoulders. "My sensors indicate lifeforms and the heat of blasters. I am afraid I must ask for your identifications."

The resistance members looked at each other for a moment, before they simultaneously released a spray of bolts at the robot. With split-second calculations, it dodged the spray with uncanny ease.

"I can see that you are very rebellious lifeforms. I am afraid I must destroy you," the robot said. It's hands retreated into it's body, producing instead a terrifyingly large sword at the end of one arm, and a revolving blaster on the other.

"Hey, Candace. Ferb. You two go on ahead; I'll handle this rustbucket," Buford said, his rocket launcher aimed.

"Don't get captured," Candace warned, backing away towards the next room.

"I don't intend to," Buford responded, gritting his teeth.

When the room cleared, the robot gave a mechanical laugh. "And now, you will face the wrath of Balloony!" it declared, shooting six blasts in rapid succession. Buford stood his ground, taking time only to press a button on his rocket launcher. A forcefield sprang up in front of him, protruding from the weapon itself.

"Well, with those idiots gone, guess it's time to show what I'm capable of," he told himself, launching a missile at Balloony. It barely paid it any mind, using the same lightning reflexes to dodge the blast, having it instead explode behind him and break the glass of the window. The glass fell about 25 stories.

Scene cut...

Meanwhile, Candace and Ferb were clearing another room of Norm-Bots. They were both alarmed, then, when reinforcements pulled in from the stairs.

"Argh! They set off an alarm!" Candace growled.

She threw down her gun and took off her quarterstaff, assaulting the doorway directly. Ferb simply stood there, not wanting to misaim and shoot Candace, but having no direct combat weapons of his own. Then he saw something of particular interest outside: Perry was flying up to the top floor, as Norm-Bots chased him with guns blazing. He took a look at his watch and pressed a button.

"Isabella," he spoke into the watch, "We have a few problems..."

Scene cut...

"Stop moving so I can destroy you!" Buford yelled with aggravation.

"That would be counterproductive to my own attempts to destroy you," Balloony said simply. He then noticed something behind Buford. "If I had a true face, I would be displaying the emotion called joy at the sight of reinforcements. That field does, after all, protect only your front."

Buford's eyes widened, and he turned to his side. The rocket launcher remained aimed towards Balloony, while his other gun faced twenty or so Norm-Bots who had arrived moments ago.

"Huh. You guys aren't completely stupid," Buford admitted, "Props for the flanking."

"It is an ancient and yet timeless strategy, lifeform," Balloony responded.

Scene cut...

"35 Norm-Bots," Ferb said, standing beside an exhausted resistance leader. "You are quite impressive when armed with a staff."

"Thanks," Candace said between breaths, "But we can't waste time. Further up and further in. We've got a job to do."

"I would approve, but you're wounded," Ferb told her, "I took the liberty of calling the Firestorm Girls via our wrist communicators. They will be along shortly to take us and Buford away. And, speaking of whom, it might be vital to check on him."

"Alright, alright. Where will they be meeting us?" Candace asked.

"Bottom floor. All we have to do is get out. And for that..." Febr pulled out three microchips from his toolbelt. "We have Slow-Fall chips."

"Good to see you prepared as ever. Let's move," Candace said, already heading back to the room wherein Buford could be found. This had turned out to be a disaster.

They backtracked to the room at record speed, and found Buford's weapons on the ground. Balloony stood by the elevator, having been waiting for them this whole time.

"Alright, rustbucket, where is he?" Candace demanded.

"Your friend, identified by the Norm-Bots as a member of the resistance against Vanessa, has been taken captive. He will be doomed in a span of time not to exceed 24 hours," Balloony told them.

"Lava chamber?" Candace inquired.

"That is correct," Balloony answered.

"Let us by," Ferb told the robot.

"That would be against my nature," Balloony said. His hands converted back to the weapons used against Buford. "You have 5 seconds to surrender and put down your weapons. All of them. Tick-tock."

"And that's against our nature," Candace responded. "Ferb, let's get out of here."

Ferb blasted to pieces the window beside them, pulling Candace along as he attacked Slow-Fall chips to both of them and jumped down. Balloony watched as they leaped out, and shrugged. 25 stories? No lifeform can survive that.

Scene cut...

Ferb and Candace, backed by the entire Firstorm brigade, retreated back to the underground bunker. Phineas, joined by an unsteady Lacey, greeted them.

"Where's Buford?" Phineas asked.

"Captured," Candace said, groaning. "Where's Perry?"

"At the DEI top floor," Ferb answered. They looked at him. "I saw him flying up."

"And no wonder why!" Lacey yelled, stamping her foot on the ground. "You were right, Candace. He's a turncoat."

"What do you mean?" Candace asked.

"He attacked me while I was on guard duty, and broke Vanessa out. Those maces hurt like heck," Lacey answered, showing several bloody spots along her arms where the spiked maces had dug into her skin.

"So, he and Vanessa have both escaped to the DEI building... which has once again proven impervious to attack," Candace summarized.

"And where Buford is held," Isabella reminded her, "And Elsie, unless... you know."

"Yeah, I know," Candace said, sighing. "I'm sorry. I have to go lie down." She walked away, holding her head.

"Three people wasn't enough for such a large-scale mission," Isabella said, "You guys should've brought more. I mean, Holly's nearly as good with inventing and building as you guys. She could've hacked the alarm systems with some weird gadget constructed in two minutes."

"I admit, I was wary of the plan when she suggested we would be using Buford's tactics," Ferb said. "I was foolish not to say anything."

"You NEVER say anything," Lacey pointed out.

"I am speaking, am I not?" Ferb questioned. It was Lacey's turn to shut up.

"I'm starting to worry about Candace," Katie said, after a pause. "She's developing habits unfitting of a leader. The torture, the poor tactic of openly charging a highly-guarded building with a mere three people..."

"I know, Katie," Isabella admitted, "I know."

Scene cut... (OMG, this is annoying, having to type this out every single time.)

"Dad, you have thirty seconds to tell me how you escaped before I order these Norm-Bots to kill you," Vanessa growled, cornering her father at the top floor of Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated.

"I refuse! Tell me why you want me dead!" Heinz shot back at the teenager.

"I'm in charge, dad. I don't have to tell you anything," Vanessa responded.

"We don't have to take revenge, Vanessa," Heinz said, "I deserved my punishment. And all you had to do was plead for a trial."

"Oh, yes, it's all about revenge! Sure thing, dad!" Vanessa shouted, "You don't know why I want this at all!"

"I... I never bought you a train to lose..." Heinz stammered.

"Shut up, dad! Just! Shut! UP!" Vanessa shouted, even louder. Suddenly, the window behind them broke, the Norm-Bots refocusing their attention on the intruder.

"Ah, Perry the platyborg," Vanessa said, grinning. "I was wondering when you might show up."

_Well, I know that my showing up twice in one chapter is unusual, but I'm back again. You can probably figure out already that things are going downhill fast. We've got our leader going crazy; two resistance members captured, or worse; another, quite powerful, member turning on us; and the most important captive we had escaped with frightening ease. It may be time for someone else to take charge and turn things around, but it would have to be someone with great tactical expertise, experience leading soldiers, little to no fear- wait, why are you looking at me like that?_

For reference: _italic_ is when Isabella speaks. Underline is Author's Note. Normal text is the story.

A one-day update will NOT be normal. And, no, i will have no normal update plan. I update when I have a chapter finished, and since I was excited by my story's success, this one was particularly quick to make.

Oh, and for anyone who finds the Chronicles of Narnia reference, you win one cookie. There may or may not be references to other popular titles in chapters to come, but if you find one (or even think you find one) say so in a review.


	4. Bitter Freedom

"Remember, girls," Isabella said, recapping on a mission briefing. "We are trying to attract P's attention, not that of the Norm-Bots. If you spot P, or get into an emergency, press the button on your emergency flashers and the other teams will be notified immediately. Every team has ten sedation needles, split between both girls on the team. Do NOT waste them, under any circumstances. Team one, attention." Holly and Ginger saluted. "You will take the northeastern territory. Team two, attention." Katie and Milly saluted. "You're staying within a 3-mile radius of the Old Abandoned Warehouse. P knows it's location, and I wouldn't put it past him to attempt to destroy it's contents. The traps are well-set, but we can't rely solely on them. Team three, attention." Melissa and Adyson saluted. "You will take your standard cross-city patrol, but be much more wary. Finally, I will be with our dear technician, Gretchen, who has decided to grace us with her presence away from the computer screen."

"As if I'm all that useful on the field!" Gretchen protested. "The computer screen IS my battlefield!"

"Remember, if you manage to find and capture P, with or without assistance, both members of the team will get 24 hours of duty-free relaxation, unless a severe crisis rears it's ugly head," Isabella said, smiling as the incentive gave obvious confidence to the Firestorms. "But remember, this is not a competition! The last thing we need is members making a stupid mistake for a vacation. So, without further ado, cho-chop!"

Scene cut...

Doo-by doo-by doo-bah! Per-ry!

Perry, with his new orders from Vanessa, flew to ground level. His robotic eye scanned the area, looking for the heat generated by life. There were several people both in and outside of buildings, but none of which his scanners identified. Suddenly, an alarm went off in his head. Literally. He looked upwards, just in time to see Melissa aiming a dartgun at him. The sedation needle flew towards him, but with the advance warning, he was capable of dodging it by a mere inch.

"Adyson! The alarm!" Melissa yelled.

Adyson's reflexes were nothing compared to Perry's, though, as he flew at the older girl with his maces out. She rolled out of the way, taking out her own dartgun.

"Why are you doing this, P?" Adyson asked, "We're your friends! We don't want to hurt you!"

Perry called Adyson on her bluff by turned around and knocking Melissa's gun out of her hands, as she aimed to take advantage of a distraction. He grabbed her and began spinning his maces in a deadly whirlwind.

"Let her go, P!" Adyson yelled, preparing her first sedation needle.

She fired, but not to the effect she had hoped. Perry turned around and put Melissa up as a shield. The needle dug into her own arm, rather than Perry's body. Melissa's eyes widened as a flash of pain wracked her arm, but it was mere seconds before she fell asleep.

"Ugh! Why do you have to be so quick, you stupid duck?" Adyson growled.

This was the wrong thing to say. He flew at her again, punching her with his organic fist. She grabbed the fist before it connected, but that left her open as his maces dug into her shoulder. She cried out in pain. Her subconscious thoughts were to activate her emergency flasher, but she knew quite well that noone was close enough to reach them in time.

"Let me... go..." she pleaded, tears starting to roll down her face. Perry shook his head, grabbing her nearby dartgun. She barely recognized the pain of the needle in her arm.

Scene cut...

Gretchen suddenly looked alert. She was getting news from Baljeet over her headset.

"Bad news, Chief," she said, "We just lost connection with team three. They were within 200 yards of DEI at the point of silence. Baljeet suspects an attack, and I agree with him."

"Hm..." Isabella mumbled. "Who's the next-closest team to the point of silence?"

"That would be team two," Gretchen said, after repeating the question and getting a response from Baljeet. "They're no less than one mile from the PoS."

"Tell them to be on guard, and prepare for a flanking procedure of Block #274, with room to edit at a later period," Isabella commanded, "We're going to hunt team three down. Rescue them, if necessary."

"Yes, sir," Gretchen responded, already activating her wrist communicator.

Scene cut...

Perry now scouted from the skies. If they were aware he was hunting him down, they would make the foolish mistake of looking for him on the ground. Both of the captured girls, bloodied and unconscious, were held by him until he could be certain noone was waiting for him at HQ. He'd already sent the message to Mistress Vanessa.

A light on his wrist lit up. Green. He flew back to HQ, finding Vanessa waiting for him at what had once been her father's desk. He laid down the girls on the floor.

"Ugh. Perry, do you have to let blood get all over the carpet?" Vanessa groaned. He shrugged. "Whatever. Firestorms, right? I think they were involved in my temporary capture." Perry nodded. "Great. Put them in the same execution queue as the brute. 2 hours until it's time, so make sure they wake up before then." Perry saluted, dragging the girls away. "And watch the carpets!"

Scene cut...

Adyson's eyes fluttered.

"Why can't I feel my arm?" she thought. Then a sharp pain seized her. "Oof, nevermind. Yowch, that hurts. Where's Melissa?"

"Adyson?" a small voice said behind her. Adyson turned her head over, seeing Melissa standing above her. There were tears on her cheeks, but Adyson noticed much more vividly the bloody arm hanging limply. "You're alive?"

"Yeah... I'm fine," Adyson said. It was a lie. She wasn't moving anything but her head, because she knew everything else would just hurt to budge. "Your arm?"

"Broken, I think," Melissa admitted, "Buford thinks it's fine, though."

"Buford? Melissa, where are we?" Adyson asked.

"According to the guard, death row," Melissa answered.

"Eh. That figures," Adyson groaned, rolling her eyes. "Should've gotten the alarm off."

"It's not your fault," Melissa assured her, "If I could've hit with that first shot, we'd be on a vacation by now."

"Will you two stop arguing over who's fault it is? We have 3 minutes until the new guard flies in, and bending titanium is harder than it looks," a gruff voice said.

"Why are you still trying, Buford?" Melissa asked, "I think we've established that it's impossible to do it in the time we have."

"Why do they have guard swaps?" Adyson asked, "Aren't Norm-Bots sleepless?"

"After her dear daddy nearly escaped the building, Vanessa's got human guards for important prisoners," Buford told her, between grunts as he pulled on the metal.

"Ah, wonderful," Adyson said sarcastically. She tried to sit up, but the pain wracked her body. She laid down for now. "All our gadgets are gone?"

"They, uh... they made very thorough searches while we couldn't protest," Melissa said sheepishly. Adyson understood.

"Well, isn't that just peachy. All forms of communication? All weapons?" Adyson implored.

"Confiscated the communications, destroyed the weapons, and confiscated the energy packs," Melissa summarized. Adyson sighed. They really were stuck here.

"Better think over our last words, then. I'm thinking 'Beep you, Vanessa'," Adyson said, smirking. "If only because an actual curse would bring Candace down on Isabella. She'd wonder just where I learned the word that had just been publicly televised."

"Meh. I think I'll go with something a little more original," Melissa said, shrugging. She gave a fake cough, and began a larger-than-life speech. "'I would like to thank everyone who helped me to get where I am. I would firstly like to thank the Norm-Bots, the soulless robots that patrol your city and keep you in check. I would also like to thank Perry the Platyborg, who gave me transportation and these awesome red streaks on my body. But most of all, i would like to thank Vanessa Doofenshmirtz, our conceited ruler with no real reason for treating human beings the way she is. Again, thank you."

Adyson chuckled at the speech. How funny it was that Melissa could be humorous, even in such a time as this. Then they heard something outside the door that lead into their cell block. It sounded like a very brief scream.

The door to their cell block opened, and through it came a black-haired Asian teenager. She was dressed in a black suit with a small blaster in her hand. None of them recognized her, and they wondered if their executions were coming early.

"You. Buford, Adyson, and Melissa?" she asked quickly and quietly.

"Uh, yeah, that's us," Buford said. He had gotten away from the bars when they heard the scream.

"Trying to bend them'll get you nowhere," she said, "Make no sounds; I'm busting you out."

"Who are you?" Melissa asked.

"No sounds," the girl punctuated.

She took out a laser pointer, and motioned them to get back. When they did so, she began work on the door hinges. In about 30 seconds, they had been broken apart, and she motioned them through the door.

"It took longer than it should have," she said, "We'll have to move quickly. The guard is no problem anymore, but the Norm-Bots will still be patrolling the upper floors."

"But... who are you?" Melissa repeated.

"Who I am is irrelevant to the mission. Move it," the girl ordered.

Adyson had the most trouble moving, and Melissa had to use her good arm just to hold the fellow Firestorm up. The girl kept ahead of them at all times, constantly peering around corners. Buford brought up the rear, constantly watching the two wounded girls for any signs of further injury. Before they got to the main entrance (and for them, the main exit), the girl stopped them.

"Balloony is guarding the main entrance. 5 Norm-Bots are with him," she whispered. "I can handle the Norm-Bots, but Balloony can't be defeated. I'll distract him, and you try to get out while I do so. Don't worry about my safety. I have my own methods of escape."

"What do you mean, you can't pop the stupid balloon?" Buford asked.

"The balloon itself is merely a false face. The threat is the body, moron," the girl said, "On my count. 3. 2. 1."

At once, the entire group burst from the corner, alarming the enemy squad. Balloony shifted to his weapons immediately, but even before the conversion was complete, the rest of his squad was scrap metal. Their rescuer peppered Balloony with blasts, and the most he could do was dodge as she used nearly equal mobility and accuracy to his own robotic form.

Meanwhile, Buford had lifted both of the girls over his shoulders and was running to the door, much to their pain as she constantly shifted their injured bodies. They were mere feet away. And then...

They were free. They had escaped Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated, alive. The fight resounded behind them as Buford kept running, determined to get away as quickly as possible.

Scene cut...

"That's a fourth of the Firestorms, gone," Gretchen reported sadly.

The entire squad had regrouped in the bunker. Isabella had her head in her hands. Katie and Holly stood next to her with their hands on her shoulders. The others sat in a circle.

"A rescue mission, and quickly," Ginger said.

"We all want to do that," Gretchen said, "But Baljeet and I ran the numbers. We don't know where they are or how heavily they're guarded, or even if they're alive. The numbers are completely and totally against a rescue mission."

"Who cares about the numbers?" Katie snapped, "Are you suggesting we leave our team members to an unknown fate?"

"I'm merely suggesting that we don't lead the rest of the team into an unknown fate," Gretchen said. Her voice was calm, but it was obvious that she was unnerved by the usually-cheerful Katie shouting at her.

"Well, I'm going to do all I can to find them, numbers or no numbers," Katie said resolutely. "Who's with me?" Almost all of the Firestorm Girls raised their hands.

"No," came a sobbing voice beside Katie. She looked at her fearless leader.

"Sorry?" Katie asked quizzically.

"I won't allow that," Isabella said, tears still running down her cheeks. "Vanessa wants us dead. And I can't let you - my allies, my team members, and my friends - to risk your lives. Adyson and Melissa will be..." She let another tear run down her cheek, and then lied. "I know they'll be fine. This is a 'needs of the many' situation."

"But WE can let ourselves risk our lives," Katie said defiantly. "I won't do it as a Firestorm Girl. This way, you can't tell me I can't do it. I'll do it as a friend of Adyson and Melissa."

"Me, too!" Milly added.

"Yeah!" joined Holly.

"I will do it as a loyal associate of Adyson and Melissa," Ginger said dully.

"As much as your loyalty is appreciated, it would be better spent on getting medical aid for them," came a large voice from the doorway.

The Firestorm Girls turned and stared in utter shock. Then they cheered and ran towards Buford, hugging him and taking Melissa and Adyson's burdens, standing them straight. Ginger simply saluted him, refusing to take part in the touchy-feely emotions.

"Your arm, Melissa! And you, Adyson!" Isabella cried in alarm.

"It's just a flesh wound," Melissa said, grimacing. "It wouldn't be as bad if our stupidly chivalrous brute knew how to properly carry a wounded person." She was smiling, though, and saluted Buford with her good arm. He returned the gesture.

"I wish I could say I'm fine, too, but to be honest, every part of me hurts. P mauled me," Adyson admitted.

"Without a medic, we'll have to get some temporary aid. Holly, you have those pain relief patches?" Isabella asked. Holly nodded, running off to fetch them.

"Buford, how did you get them out? How did YOU get out?" Katie asked. She had sidled up to him warmly, and was resting her head on his shoulder.

"Funny story, there..." Buford began.

_Buford told us all about the mysterious girl who had saved them from impending doom. While Melissa and Adyson were taken to receive what limited medical care they could, Gretchen asked for detailed descriptions of her, and relayed them to Baljeet. We couldn't find a single record of any Asian-descended family in Danville besides Ginger's own, though. When we asked her, she confirmed that she had no living relatives who fit the description. She once had a sister named Stacy, but she had vanished soon after Heinz came to power, and never returned. So, we'll be digging further into this. I mean, the person who saved them has to exist somewhere._

And the plot thickens! I am considering changing the rating to T on this fanfic. There will be no language if the story changes (it's against my nature), but the story would take an even darker turn. I will not do this unless my readers want it, though. Otherwise, it will remain at this level of darky-edgy. And again, cookies for references! I have one intentional one in this chapter.

Remember: Read! Review!


	5. 3 Years Too Late

Stacy packed up her suit and weapons into a pack. That had been far too risky a mission. Invading DEI, well, that was no issue if she could avoid Balloony. But getting prisoners out was another thing altogether. And three of them? She turned to the blond girl in the corner of the small building.

"Are we leaving?" the girl asked.

"Soon, Elsie," Stacy said.

"Why can't you get me back to the main resistance?" Elsie asked.

"First of all, I've told you over and over again: it's not the 'main' resistance. It's the other resistance," Stacy said, narrowing her eyes. "Secondly, I really prefer to keep my identity under wraps. My sister's a Firestorm Girl, isn't she?"

"Ginger? Yeah," Elsie answered.

"She would recognize me on sight. Even in a disguise. Trust me, it was always that way when we played games together," Stacy said. "You would be going home alone."

"But if Buford can manage that without weapons, surely I can manage it with a borrowed one," Elsie reasoned. Stacy rolled her eyes, and stared as seriously as she could into Elsie's own.

"Elsie, you're a medic, not a fighter. How many times have you actually held a blaster, let alone fired one? How many Norm-Bots do you think you can outrun before they capture you again? And do you really think I'm going to break you out again after you make a stupid mistake a second time?" Stacy asked.

"Well, you can do it effortlessly, so yeah, I think you would," Elsie said.

"You think breaking prisoners out is easy?" Stacy asked. She grumbled, and sat down. "I can get you to the street where your bunker is, if you can lead me. But don't say anything about how you got out. Nothing."

"I promise," Elsie said.

"Good," Stacy answered, "I'll give you a blaster, just in case, but don't go misfiring and shoot me. I'm not immortal."

"Are you sure?" Elsie thought to herself.

Scene cut...

"Point in the other direction," Stacy grumbled, as the two were surrounded by Norm-Bots. It had, of course, been Elsie's fault, when she accidentally fired a shot into a window. The noise had been attractive.

"Oh, this is easy for you," Elsie responded, rolling her eyes and lining up her shot.

She remembered why she hated blasters. They were hard for her to aim, even moreso because she was left-handed but right-eye dominant.

"Yes, it is. But I have to protect you, too, or this will have been for nothing," Stacy said, having taken down ten Norm-Bots by the time Elsie took down one. "Besides, I have a reputation to keep, or rather, a lack of one. I can't let myself be found unless I want to be found."

When Elsie didn't respond, she turned around and noticed a blast on her leg. She was on the ground, and Stacy hadn't heard her groan over the sounds of the battle. Elsie had been wounded. Stacy narrowed her eyes.

"Better escape while you can," she told the Norm-Bots. "Because you're gonna pay for that."

Scene cut...

"So, you mean to say that Coltrane been getting letters from a girl named Stacy for weeks now?" Isabella repeated. Jeremy nodded. "You haven't even told Candace?" He shook his head. "Please go tell her. I have no right knowing something she doesn't. She's our leader."

When Jeremy left, Ginger crossed her arms. "Years. It's been years," she said. "She would be dead by now."

"I'm not so sure anymore," Gretchen said. She and Baljeet had left the computers and were sitting together. "She might've changed her name, or moved away from Danville. The description matches her, doesn't it?"

"No, not since I saw her," Ginger said stubbornly. "She may have changed since then, though."

"So, if Stacy's a rebel, why isn't she with us?" Katie asked.

"IF she's a rebel," Ginger reminded.

"Well, it may be because she was a rebel longer than we were," Isabella said, "You said she disappeared as soon as Heinz seized power."

"Hey, speaking of our rescuer, you guys may want to check this out," Buford said. He had passed by the screens on his way to the girls. "The surveillance cameras are showing her. She's got some blond girl with her."

"Girls, sashes," Isabella said, "But we want to catch her, not hurt her."

"Yes, sir!" the girls said together, saluting.

They took their sashes from beside them and ran outside, but Stacy saw them coming. Before any of them could get in range, she had laid Elsie down and pulled out a smoke bomb. For once, though, her reflexes did not serve her well enough, as one Firestorm Girl grabbed her from behind. The others immediately whipped their sashes around her. The one behind her came to see her fully.

"... Stacy, is that you?" she asked. It was Ginger.

"Heh. I knew you'd recognize me somehow, sis," Stacy said, blushing. Ginger's eyes widened, before going back to their usual emotionless, duty-focused gaze.

"You are not our prisoner, but you have questions to answer," Ginger said. "Milly, could you get blondie here?"

"Yeah, ok," Milly answered.

Scene cut...

"How did you rescue all of our prisoners? Elsie was lost ages ago," Ginger asked. Stacy was sitting across from her, untied but surrounded by the Firestorm Girls.

"DEI isn't that well-guarded. It's not my fault your resistance is too incompetent to invade it," Stacy said, shrugging.

"Why have you been talking to Coltrane?" Ginger continued.

"Would you prefer I chat up your psychotic leader? I've heard about some of the things she's done," Stacy answered, "Coltrane can keep a secret."

"How do you learn about the happenings of the resistance?" Ginger asked.

"Eh... rumors, mostly. Little here, little there. I pick up on stuff," Stacy said.

"Do you have any contacts?" Ginger asked.

"Not really. I've been on my own for these past few years," Stacy answered.

"Why did you leave us?" Ginger asked. Her voice was much more meek with this question. Isabella could've sworn it was truly like a younger sister asking the same question to an older sibling.

"To protect you, of course. If I attracted any attention, who do you think he would go after? Those I was close to. I had to separate myself from those I loved," Stacy said, although this answer seemed to come to her harder than the others.

"I... see," Ginger said, turning her head away and closing her eyes.

"So, how are your friends' recoveries coming along?" Stacy asked Isabella.

"Much better than they would be if they were dead," Isabella said, "When we can get Elsie on her feet again, she'll probably go straight back to helping. For now, the mad scientists are relying on technology to temporary solutions."

"Heh. Mad scientists?" Stacy asked, smirking.

"Phineas, Ferb, and Holly. Holly's better with military technology, but she can probably help a bit," Isabella said.

"Hm. The brunette - Adyson, I think - had worse injuries when I last saw her. How's she holding up?" Stacy asked.

"Well, when we cleared away the blood, we uncovered a broken leg, and her right arm was slashed horribly. She had lost so much blood, we tried to use an IV. But, well... none of us actually knew how to use one," Isabella said.

"It's a needle. How hard is that to use?" Stacy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"How much do you know about tending to the injured?" Isabella asked accusingly.

"Keep them from moving broken bones too much, and wrap up severe bleeding until the blood stops," Stacy said, shrugging.

"Done and done," Isabella said, "Luckily, with Elsie back, she can take care of them. So, why do you not join with us?"

"As obvious as it is that you guys need help, and a lot of it-" Isabella growled at the repeated offense. "People tend to be better at avoiding trouble when alone. At least, competent people are." She then received a smack across the cheek. It was from Ginger of all people.

"Stacy, ever since we were kids I thought the world of you!" Ginger yelled, standing up to her full height. "You were brave, athletic, smart, and more. But now I see that you're just a horrible, self-righteous, conceited... gah, I have so many words for you right now!"

"Uh-huh," Stacy said, narrowing her eyes and standing up even taller (not hard, considering a 4-year age difference). "I'm just going to bring you back to the real world right now, Ginge. Don't bother; I already know you hate that nickname. Anyway, just tell me one way in which saving four of your friends' hides, at great risk to my own, is self-righteous and conceited. Oh, yeah, and knocking out Vanessa for some of your other buddies. How about leaving you?"

Saying the last one was a mistake. Ginger could easily find a way to release 3 years' worth of missing-sister frustration. "Fine! You think that was a good choice? Tell that to mom. Oh, wait, you can't. She's dead. But you wouldn't know that. You never so much as sent us a message to know you were still alive! Or how about dad? Oh, yeah, you wouldn't know that he was practically enslaved by Doofenshmirtz after you left. We STILL can't find him, after 3 years! Harry, your dear hedgehog? Oh, guess what, he was in the OWCA when it was subjugated! I have been alone, because you decided to rebel! I had no family! For 7 months, I fended for myself!"

Stacy was slowly being brought down as Ginger's rant continued. She hadn't known any of this. She had, as much as she hated to admit it, been afraid to go back. Afraid mostly that her family would be harmed by it... not knowing that her family couldn't have been any more harmed. But the fact that her little sister had been alone for 7 months was what hit her hardest.

"Out of curiousity, is this why you're always so serious?" Milly asked.

"Oh, of COURSE not!" Ginger now snapped at Milly, who shrank back. "Being alone wouldn't possibly make anyone serious! Whatever gave you that idea? Of course that's why! I can't let myself get attached to someone, because as soon as I meet them, they may disappear, or die, or be enslaved, or anything! Have you noticed the world we live in yet?"

"I want to talk," Stacy said quietly.

"You had your chance to give an excuse!" Ginger yelled.

"Ginger, I'm sorry," Stacy apologized. She sounded sincere, but the apology had an adverse effect.

"Oh, so you've finally decided to come around and give a 3-years-overdue apology!" she yelled, furious. "Well, that just makes everything dandy! Let's go home and live with mom and dad as a happy little family again! We can play with Harry! It'll be like nothing ever happened!" The Firestorm Girls were getting very unnerved by the rage exhibited by Ginger. "You have the nerve to come back! To belittle our resistance! And then to try to apologize? There will be no forgiveness! Not after all of this! We are not sisters!"

Stacy was utterly shocked by the last proclamation. Her own sister had just disowned her. She hung her head and turned towards the door.

"I deserve this, I know," she said, "I won't bother you again, Ginger. But I won't stop helping. If you or any of your friends are in danger, I'll be there. We're sisters... no matter what boundaries are between us." And with that, she left.

Scene cut...

"Well, P, it seems our prisoners broke out. Balloony has informed me that my past captive was behind the escape," Vanessa said, her legs kicked up on her father's desk. "Now, obviously, it's too risky to attack them at their base. I mean, who knows how many of those stupid needles they have there? No offense to your abilities, but you probably couldn't get in." Perry was wondering why he had been called in at this point.

"Leave, now. Do not return unless you have a prisoner. Take however many Norm-Bots you need to accomplish the task. I want them dead or alive."

Been wondering why little miss Ginger is so serious and pretty much emotionless? Well, there's your answer. As a kid, 7 months alone will influence your view of the world something fierce. And when said world is ruled by a mad dictator and killer robots, you certainly become jaded.

Remember: Read! Review! (And, yes, this was another quick chapter.)


	6. The Fourth Wall is Broken

"So, Elsie, how are they?" Holly asked. She was sitting in a makeshift hospital ward, where Elsie had forced Adyson and Melissa to stay for a time no less than a week. They were asleep at the time.

"Melissa's arm is healing well, but she hasn't been put in a sling. Honestly, you guys should at least know to do that. It's one of the simplest rules of first aid," Elsie said. Her leg had been wrapped up, and she was healed enough that she could stand and tend to others. "Adyson, meanwhile... her leg is badly broken. I'm surprised she could walk at all. And who was responsible for carrying them back, again?"

"Buford, we've told you a million times," Holly answered.

"Remind me to teach him how to transport wounded people," Elsie growled.

"Heh, alright. Have you checked on Lacey, by any chance?" Holly asked.

"Yeah she's fine. Those bandages were all that was really necessary. She wasn't hurt nearly to the extent that these two were," Elsie said, "Where are the other Firestorms?"  
>"Manufactory #172," Holly said, "Along with Django. Coltrane and Jeremy are with... that guy... you know."<p>

"Three-man strike team strikes again," Elsie said, rolling her eyes. She was no longer examining the two, sitting down across from Holly.

"Yeah, him. They're taking out another one. Just about 16 more after these and we can run the Dimension Hopper. Phineas and Ferb are inventing some crazy contraption, but they wanted it to be a surprise, so I'm out of this one," Holly said. Elsie raised an eyebrow, when she noticed that Holly had mentioned Phineas quite a bit more emphatically.

"You like 'em?" she asked.

"Well, yeah, they're some of the best friends I have. I'm more at home in the lab than in the field, even," Holly answered.

"Yeah. That's what I meant," Elsie said sarcastically. "So, has Candace been out recently?"

"No. We're worried about her," Holly admitted. "She barely goes on the field, anymore. She's practically put Isabella, Jeremy, and the twins in charge. She still comes out and gives plans occasionally, but other than that, she's nearly nonexistent."

"Hm. I'm no psychiatrist, but I'm the closest the resistance has. Maybe I should see her," Elsie suggested.

"It's as good a plan as any. We're seriously considering removing Candace from command if this continues, but we don't want to," Holly said, "Let's go right now, while they're asleep and you can stop mollycoddling them."

"Alright, then," Elsie said, standing up with Holly.

They entered a tunnel which lead across the street, climbing a ladder that was actually in the outer wall of the Flynn-Fletcher house. They knocked on the ceiling above them, which they knew was simply a trapdoor.

"Who are you?" Candace asked from inside her room.

"Holly and Elsie. You are Candace, leader of the resistance. We would like to speak to you," Holly said.

"One moment," Candace said. They could hear a door being locked and curtains pulled, before Candace cautiously opened the door. Her staff was in one hand, but she relaxed when she saw that it was really them. "Well, we're alone. What did you want?"

"I'm just gonna say it. I'm worried about you, sir," Elsie said, sitting in a nearby chair. Candace raised an eyebrow, urging her to explain. "I've heard from Holly that you do not come out of your house much. And, well, as the almost semi-qualified doctor of the resistance, I'm concerned."

"I'm not sick or injured," Candace said, sitting on her bed and crossing her arms.

"I didn't say you were," Elsie responded. "I'm more concerned for your mental health, if I may. You were once our go-to girl for any mission, no matter the danger. And yes recently, you merely direct from behind the scenes, if that. You have practically left the resistance." Candace stayed silent for a while.

"Can you blame me?" she asked at last. Neither of the girls had heard such a weak response from Candace, neither in wording nor voice. "I let you down. I let Buford down. I let Adyson and Melissa down. How soon will it be before I let someone else down, and leave that other girl to rescue them?"

"Stacy is her name," Elsie said quickly. "You know quite well that noone blames you for any of that."

"You're wrong," Candace said, shaking her head. "I blame myself. If I lose my own members left and right, what makes me fit to lead?"

"Funny thing, there-" Holly began, but Elsie shook her head to quiet her.

"Listen, more people will be lost if noone leads," Elsie pressed.

"Well, yeah. And can't Isabella lead as well as I can?" Candace asked.

"I doubt it," Elsie said, "You're older and more experienced.

"You wanna bet?" Candace asked, raising an eyebrow. "Scene cut, please!

Scene cut...

"Ginger, get the second floor!" Isabella ordered, holding off a flank of Norm-Bots.

Ginger nodded, taking the steps two at a time to what could barely be called a floor. It was a bunch of rickety walkways and rails atached to the ceiling, which Norm-Bots were swarming. The railings were balanced precariously over vats of the same liquid energy used to power weaponry and the robots themselves. Ginger thought the entire design of the manufactories was stupidly unsafe, but then took into account that Doofenshmirtz wouldn't care. By the time she reached the second floor, there were Norm-Bots lined up behind each other, preparing to fire if she took down the one in front of them. She smirked, and delivered a flying kick to the first Norm-Bot.

"Uh-oh," it said in it's jovial Norm voice, as it was kicked backwards, knocking into the dozen others behind it.

"Fact: the enemy of the Norm-Bot is a preteen black belt," Ginger deadpanned.

Meanwhile, Katie and Django were ripping through much farther Norm-Bots, away from the rest of the group. In the past few weeks, Django had his birthday, and been given the bizarre present of a weaponized paintbrush, partially to poke fun at his tendency to use them as weapons, anyway. The paintbrush couldn't actually be used to paint, as the fake paint at the tip was actually metal-melting acid. It tore through the Norm-Bots as Katie went wild with her daggers.

"So, Katie," Django said, clearing his throat and going back-to-back with the girl. "What kind of plans do you have for when this is over?"

"Why do you ask?" Katie questioned, taking down another robot.

"Eh, no reason. I was just... listen, we've known each other for a while, right?" Django asked. He was glad that she couldn't see his increasingly-red face, and not due to the heat of the factory.

"Well, yeah," Katie said, shrugging as they each took down more of the enemy. "Since you moved here years ago."

"I, uh... ever thought of us as really close friends?" Django asked.

"I don't see why it matters," Katie said. Django sighed.

"Eh, nevermind. I'll talk to you more when we're not in a life-or-death situation," he said, shrugging.

"Ok..." Katie muttered, completely befuddled.

Elsewhere, Isabella had fought off the flank and took the chance to call Gretchen, who was hacking into the manufactory's layout from a distance. Milly covered her in the meantime.

"Gretchen, which direction to the main controls? The quicker we can stop Norm-Bots from spawning, the better," Isabella said.

"You're standing on them," Gretchen reported.

"No, I'm not. They are quite clearly not at my feet," Isabella said, "Where are they?"

"I just told you. Does the floor look newer at your feet?" Gretchen asked.

"Yeah, why?" Isabella answered.

"Blast a hole in it, the controls are probably beneath the floor," Gretchen said, "Is that all you need?"

"Yeah, I'll call you if they're not there," Isabella said, "Over and out."

Isabella took a laser pointer and began carving a hole in the floor, which, Milly noticed, attracted a lot of attention. She shot off Norm-Bots, when Isabella gasped. The controls _were_ beneath the floor. She took her blaster and destroyed them. The machines throughout the manufactory slowed down and halted, and the Norm-Bots hastily began retreating.

The Firestorms (including Gretchen) and Django regrouped by a vat of energy.

"We can consider this factory seized. Good work, girls and boy," Isabella congratulated. "Begin rerouting the power to the headquarters for future use in the Dimension Hopper."

"Yes, sir," Gretchen said, flying her fingers across a laptop.

"I gotta say, this thing is useful," Django said, twirling his acidic brush around.

"So, what were you gonna say to me, Django?" Katie asked. Django froze.

"Um- I was gonna say... uh..." He looked at the questioning faces of the girls around him. "That you're really good at fighting?"

"Well, I hope she is," Isabella said, with her hands on her waist. "I trained every Firestorm Girl in my command personally."

"You're, uh, a really great leader!" Django said, grinning a ridiculously fake smile. The girls rolled their eyes, not wanting to go deeper into whatever he was playing at.

"Power rerouted, sir," Gretchen reported, "This was a fairly active manufactory. Along with the power that Jeremy's squad seized just minutes ago, we need about 14.5 manufactory's worth of power."

"Or just one," Katie suddenly said.

"Sorry? That would take a huge manufactory," Isabella said.

"Yep. There just happens to be a huge manufactory here in Danville," Katie said, smiling. It took a moment for the other girls to catch on.

"No, way. Way too heavily-guarded. Plus, it would attract loads of attention," Isabella said, shaking her head.

"What are you girls talking about?" Django asked.

"Manufactory #1," Katie said. Django's jaw dropped.

_Yes, a single manufactory with the strength of 15 others. That would be our target... except that it has the fortifications of a hundred. We estimate over 2,000 Norm-Bots guarding that factory alone, not to mention the speed at which it can make more. Is it possible to take it? Yes, most likely. Is it possible to take it without death of our friends? Highly unlikely. I don't even know what Katie was thinking. I mean, Candace would never approve, right? Right?_

First of all, I would like to thank Midnight4568 for remaining a constant reviewer of my story You win a cookie, completely free. Second, this was a fairly short chapter, but I intend to make up for it in the next one, with, hopefully, a decent action scene. I admit, I'm not good at writing those, favoring dialogue in my style. But maybe I can pull it off. And once power is secured, it's off to the First Dimension!

Remember: Read! Review!


	7. The New Commander

The entire resistance had gathered. Candace had promised to come out with a big announcement, which both Holly and Elsie were fairly nervous about. Elsie sat with the Fireside Girls, as had Django. Phineas and Ferb were preparing a set of microphones, until Candace came forward and they pulled back to the crowd.

"Hello," she said, which invited a response of quiet muttering. "I think you know quite well that I am not a woman of words, so this will be quick. First of all, I realize that we have for far too long been an unofficial organization under Doofemshmirtz' nose. But, since she knows about us anyway, I think we can officially be called the Resistance!" She was met with silence. "Capital R?" More silence. "Well, good thing that wasn't the big announcement. Isabella, please step beside me. Jeremy, on the other side." They were fairly perplexed, as they came to stand beside her on the nonexistent stage.

"Now, as you all know, it was a mere 16 hours ago that two manufactories were seized by the Resistance," Candace said, met with a general nod. "And, as you know, the geniuses behind the missions were none other than Jeremy and Isabella. Without them- Sorry, what is it, Isabella?"

"To complete your sentence, 'without us' the missions would've gone fine," Isabella said, "We have some of the most capable soldiers in the country under our command."

"True though that is," Candace said, "Leadership is a necessary value. Especially for a new leader." The Resistance gasped, except for Holly and Elsie. Their faces went white as they realized that Candace had been serious. "It's not as bad as you think. I've been under a lot of stress recently, which some of you may have noticed by my tendency to be shamefully holed up in my room. Either Isabella or Jeremy would make a fantastic leader of the Resistance, freeing me up to take on the field once more. But I think it's best that only one of them take the position, lest there be infighting among our members. Phineas, Ferb, please pass out the datapads."

Phineas and Ferb walked amongst the Resistance members, passing out tiny pads with just a few words: "Who should be the new Resistance leader? -Isabella / -Jeremy".

"It's fairly straightforward. Press the one you choose, based on past experience with their leadership. Feel free to speak to the candidates or myself. When everyone has voted, they will be tallied and the candidate with the most votes takes the position." Before either Jeremy or Isabella could protest, she added, "MUST take the position. This is based on who would be the best leader by the opinion of the Resistance. Now, everyone, begin."

The air was tense as Jeremy and Isabella watched datapads pressed, occasionally being asked a question. They each silently hoped that the other would get the position, seeing that it was stressful enough that Candace would willingly leave it. In 30 minutes, the voting had finished, and Candace took each datapad. She read the contents of each quietly.

"Isabella... Isabella... Jeremy... Jeremy... Isabella... Jeremy... Jeremy... Isabella..." she muttered. She was keeping tally in her head, before she looked up after all datapads had been exhausted.

"Well, everyone. Your new Resistance Leader is..."

_Hi! Oh, huh, I'm interrupting? Coulda sworn I was supposed to... oh, right, here you go._

"Isabella Garcia-Shapiro!" Candace exclaimed, "Although it was very, very, very close. Isabella..." Candace bowed respectfully. "Sir, what is your first order?"

_Hi. Again. Sorry about that last time. Yeah, I was elected Resistance leader. That was really a surprise, considering Jeremy had a lot more age and experience than I did. Anyway, it was really weird being called "sir" by my former superior. I thought about my position for a while, until being shaken back to reality._

"Huh? Oh, right, sorry, sir," Isabella told Candace apologetically.

"Excuse me?" Candace said, raising an eyebrow and smiling. Isabella noted on how it had been a long time since she saw Candace smile - it was on her latest date with Jeremy, before Vanessa took over.

"Um, I mean Candace. Can I call you sir? It's just... weird," Isabella admitted.

"Hey, whatever you like," Candace said, "What's our next mission? Now that Melissa at least is on her feet, she's no longer completely held hostage - I mean, held in the hospital."

"Wow, Candace cracking jokes? This may be the greatest thing to happen to the Resistance yet," Isabella said. "I don't know what to say or do. I wasn't expecting this." Katie immediately raised her hand. "Yes, Katie?"

"You have command of the entire Resistance, sir," she said, "There are, at a bare minimum, 70 members."

"83, actually," Candace corrected.

"Ok, then. Excluding Elsie and Baljeet, since they don't fight, and Adyson, since her leg's hurt, that's 80 soldiers with which to charge a manufactory. Each member is trained enough to take down at least 50 Norm-Bots," Katie said, thinking about the numbers. "Suzy, what were your scores in the simulation?"

"23 Norm-Bots before I got shot in the left arm," Suzy said.

"And you're the least trained of any combatant. I think we could manage Manufactory #1," Katie said. Everyone in the Resistance gasped, excluding Candace, Isabella, and Katie herself.

"You realize the estimates are at 2,000 Norm-Bots already built and guarding, right? Even if Baljeet could crack the access code to get to the floorplan-"

"Done," Baljeet reported. Isabella was caught off-guard, but she continued.

"- We still have the guards to get past. 79 members - you forgot that Melissa is also injured - is not enough to get through," Isabella said, corssing her arms.

"Then 80 might be," Melissa said, standing up and holding a blaster in her unslinged hand.

"Make that 81," Elsie offered.

"82," Baljeet said.

"83," Adyson said. She had limped over to the main group, but Elsie made a rude coughing noise.

"82," Elsie corrected, forcefully gripping Adyson's arm and dragging her back to the hospital corner.

"Y'know, that would've been a lot more awesome if Elsie had let her do it," Coltrane said.

"Melissa's broken arm is one thing," Elsie said, "But Adyson would go down in the first few seconds of the battle."

"So, um, everyone is willing to fight in the manufactory?" Isabella asked.

"Heh. 2,000? Piece of cake," Buford said, smiling.

"I, uh... Candace, are you in favor of this?" Isabella asked.

"That one manufactory can get us enough power to run the Dimension Hopper," Candace said thoughtfully. " 'Jeet, what are the odds of success?"

"The computers tell us that it is a 35% chance of success, and a 20% chance of complete and total failure. That is, of course, only with known factors," Baljeet said.

"That's way too low a chance of success!" Isabella cried.

"Heh, trust me, it isn't really," Candace said, "The chances of us successfully deposing Heinz were 3.28%, but we managed. I'm in favor of this plan."

"Alright. All in favor?" Isabella asked. Her hopes were dashed as the vote was nigh-unanimous. "All opposed?" Noone stood up. "... Get a good rest tonight, everyone, because I suppose that we're attacking tomorrow. Baljeet, Gretchen, Candace, Phineas, Ferb, and Jeremy, please come to the planning room with me. We've got a battle to plan."

Scene cut...

"Yes? Tomorrow?" Vanessa asked a few minutes later, being told of the plan to attack by someone on the other side of the communicator. "Very interesting. I appreciate the info. I'll make sure that when they go in, they're not coming back out. In the meantime, deal with the ones who stay at the base. That broken-leg girl and her doctor will mostly likely be undefended, since they'll need the entire Resistance to have a remote chance of winning the factory. Bye."

She switched the communicator to Perry's frequency. "Hey, P, change of plans. Gather up every Norm-Bot you can find and watch Manufactory #1. The Resistance is attacking tomorrow, and I need you to trap them inside. You cannot be seen, though... at least not until they're already in your clutches. Comprende? Good."

She next contacted Balloony, and gave him orders to meet with Perry for the counterattack. This time, the Resistance would fall.

Scene cut...

Isabella woke up earlier than usual to relieve Elsie of night watch. She wouldn't normally be put on that duty, but since she wouldn't be fighting, she didn't need as much rest. Melissa, Lacey, and Baljeet also stayed to guard (and in Baljeet's case, give them remote orders).

The rest of the Resistance, from Jeremy's strike team to Irving, organized immediately upon being woken into individual squads. Django, Irving, Suzy, and Buford got stuck together. Other squads consisted of the Firestorm Girls (minus Holly), the strike team (which Candace joined up with), the mad scientists, and various other teams.

Isabella walked amongst the teams, inspecting equipment and reminding them of emergency retreat signals and maneuvers. They had made about 20 different contingency plans to minimize loss in nearly any event.

"Hey, Phineas. Holly," Isabella said, before turning to Ferb.

She bit her lip for a moment. What they were doing was incredibly reckless, despite their planning. If he didn't survive... She walked up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He turned to her, raising an eyebrow quizzically.

"For good luck, Ferb," she assured him. She mentally smacked herself at the sorry excuse. "Um, you know what? I'll explain later. Bye!" She scurried off to the next group, leaving Holly to giggle at her leader's nervousness, not in the face of impending doom, but in the face of her green-haired friend.

The next group were Jeremy and Candace's team. They were loading up ammo into their guns, and saluted as she stepped in front of them.

"Everything prepared?" she asked.

"Nearly," Candace said, smiling. Isabella couldn't get over how creepy it was to see Candace smiling. It was like leaving command made her a completely different person.

"Excellent. Do you have all necessary equipment for Escape Plan Alpha and Beta?" Isabella asked.

"Yes, sir, those were the first things we grabbed," Jeremy answered. "Why do we need duct tape, though?"

"Phineas suggested it. As he puts it, you can never have too much duct tape in a plan," Isabella said.

"And the blowtorch? And the peanut butter?" Coltrane asked.

"Also Phineas. Don't ask me what goes through his head. All I know is that he's sure to find some use for them," Isabella said, shrugging. "I've got to inspect the other teams. Don't forget anything, because we're definitely not coming back to get it once we begin marching."

She next came to the Firestorm Girls. Gretchen had a laptop in one hand and her sash in the other. Katie was putting another energy pack into each of her knives. Ginger was stretching before the march in order to avoid injury in battle. Milly was making sure all blasters were in good condition. They saluted loyally as she approached.

"Alright, who has the sedation needles with them?" Isabella asked. Milly raised her hand. "Excellent. We don't know if we'll attract P's attention or not, but it's best to be prepared. Do we have enough energy packs?"

"Plenty, sir," Milly assured her.

"Good. Katie, is that rust on your knife?" Isabella asked.

"No, sir, just dry blood," Katie assured her.

"Good. Then- wait, what were you attacking that bled?" Isabella asked, shocked.

"Uh- um... noone in the Resistance, sir!" Katie said, blushing and embarassed at the slip of her tongue. Isabella eyed her for a moment, scared, before moving on without another word.

"Sir, we've prepared ourselves," Django said, when Isabella made it to Buford's group.

"Excellent. Buford, you are squad leader, correct?" Isabella asked.

"That's what Candace told me you planned," Buford said.

"Alright. I don't want you pulling any Leroys. You're responsible for your squad," Isabella said sternly.

"You think I'd put them in danger for a few cheap thrills?" Buford asked.

"Well, yes," Isabella admitted.

"You seem to be under the delusion that I'm stupid," Buford said, "You can count on me to get everyone in my squad out, alive and successful." Isabella seemed stunned for a moment.

"... It's good to see that I can depend on you, Buford. Get ready to do what you do best: resist," Isabella said, smiling.

"No," Buford replied, although he obviously meant it jokingly.

"Good."

"Sir! Excuse me, sir!" Lacey called, running to Isabella.

"Yes? How can I help you? Are the fortifications not running at 100%?" Isabella asked worriedly.

"No, sir, defenses are fine," Lacey assured her. "But, well, you may want to see what the screens are showing. It's in northeast Danville."

Isabella followed Lacey to where Baljeet was consulting a computer screen. A video from one of the many spy cameras the Resistance accessed was showing Perry, with at least a hundred Norm-Bots accompanying him.

"Near the manufactory?" Isabella asked Baljeet.

"That is correct, although their attention seems to be directed instead at the surrounding area," Baljeet explained.

"Hm... well, we have enough members on the march that even P may not be too much of a problem," Isabella said thoughtfully. "We've packed sedation needles, and the Norm-Bots aren't an issue at all. Keep an eye on him, and call us if anything else rises."

"Yes, sir," Baljeet said dutifully.

Isabella walked to the head of the something-of-an-army. There were 77 faces looking at her expectantly.

"Alright, everyone. The time has come to take that manufactory and get backup from the First Dimension. Is everyone prepared?" There was a unanimous salute. "Good. Then let's march, and pray that everything goes according to one of the dozen or so plans we have written up."

_Well, I never wanted to be the leader of the Resistance. I never wanted to be leading an army to what may very well be their deaths. If this fails, then the Resistance will be easy pickings. I'm a bit nervous, first and foremost, about the very few soldiers remaining at the HQ. If someone got past the defenses surrounding it, they wouldn't be all that dificult to kill._

_And, of course, we ourselves are charging the aforementioned heavily-guarded manufactory. Plan A begins with getting past the wall around it. On said wall, there are lasers, Norm-Bots, and easily-accessed explosives with which to rain death on us. Even when we get past that, the manufactory itself has several traps, most of them heat-sensing. I'm estimating, without any actual numerical backup, that no more than half of us will make it back out. I'm beginning to see why Candace started cracking._

I ultimately decided to push the action back a chapter. I'm considering making the manufactory a two-parter, and considering the length of my chapters, that would average around 5,000 words. Sounds decent enough.

Remember: Read! Review!


	8. Manufactory 1, Part One

The Resistance reached the manufactory with suspicious ease. Not a single Norm-Bot had patrolled the entire area, and Buford's squad (sent ahead as scouts) confirmed that the path was completely clear for approximately a 1-mile radius all around their intended march. Isabella and Candace were visibly wary of this news.

By the time they reached Manufactory #1, half an hour later, they were on their toes. Isabella observed the walls around the factory. Cameras were planted at regular intervals. Phineas and Candace were beside her, as the rest of the Resistance waited several yards back.

"We can't just shoot those cameras down," Candace whispered, "The Norm-Bots would notice. I wish these had been on the floorplans so we could prepare for them."

"They wouldn't be stupid, or at least Vanessa wouldn't," Isabella whispered back.

"If I may, Holly brought plenty of Spiders," Phineas suggested, "I doubt the cameras use energy packs, so they won't explode like the Norm-Bots do. They'll just shut down, which is signifcantly less noticeable."

"Well, then, can you suggest a way to get close enough to hurl them without-" Isabella began, but cut off when she noticed Phineas had a smile on his face. "Ok, what do you have?"

"A gun," Phineas said, "Ferb and I built it as a gift for Holly. It fires Spiders. Holly has it with her."

"A gift for Holly, hm?" Candace asked, raising an eyebrow knowingly.

"Well, yeah," Phineas said, not understanding Candace's point. "I'll get her. Hang on."

Phineas left, and returned a minute later with Holly, who was fitting a Spider into an oddly shaped gun.

"Ok, how many cameras do I need to take down?" Holly asked.

"I see at least 7 that need to go down before we can move in undetected," Isabella said, "Don't shoot any Norm-Bots, though. They'll see an explosion easily."

"You got it," Holly said.

Phineas joined with her as they broke from the cover of the building. She fired once, landing the Spider on a wall-mounted security camera. The Spider began chewing through, as she shot another one at a second camera. In short order, every camera that was pointed at the main entrance was down. Phineas high-fived her.

"Good shots," he complimented. She giggled, before Isabella caught up with them.

"Good, I don't think anyone noticed," she said, "Phineas, would you please get Irving? He'll need to hack in and open the main gate before we can march. Holly, regroup with the other Firestorms." They saluted and walked off to do their duties.

Scene cut...

"Got it," Irving whispered, pressed against a wall by the main gate. "Lemme just get a few commands in... and it's open!"

The main gate creaked, and began to slide to the side. Then came the Norm-Bots, as expected. Irving yelped and ducked, a shot hitting where his head had been half a second ago. Isabella and the rest of Irving's squad were with him, and they wasted no time in getting a signal off, telling the Resistance that the invasion was beginning.

Buford leapt in front of Irving protectively, activating the forcefield on his rocket launcher. He blasted a hole in the Norm-Bot that had fired, before moving on to take out another.

Django swept through the gate with his sword-length paintbrush drawn, swiping at all nearby enemies and easily corroding their armor to get at their squishy mechanics. He cut off one from it's energy pack, and another he impaled.

Isabella backed up and fired at the Norm-Bots attacking from above, targeting primarily the explosives they carried before they could be dropped. She heard a satisfying explosion, knowing that she had just used a bomb against them.  
>Then the rest of the Resistance turned the corner and charged. They spread out to avoid being the target of an ally. The Norm-Bots were overwhelmed, and the Resistance pushed them back inside the walls, where they swiftly dispatched them. Irving took a look at the door into the actual manufactory, before shooting a cable.<p>

"It was rigged. Probably some kind of trap," he explained.

He stepped cautiously to the door as the Resistance waited to be let inside, shooting another cable along the way. He found a keypad, and set to work. In mere seconds, he had cracked the passcode, and the Resistance flooded inside.

The battle quickly descended into chaos, as the Resistance broke into the individual squads. Isabella and the Firestorm Girls set to work looking for the controls for the northeast section of the factory. there were four different sections of the factory, each of them controlled separately. Katie and Ginger ran ahead of the others, using their respective techniques to clear a path and leave the other girls to take down only those that survived.

Katie let her adrenaline fuel her, as she announced her presence through screams and explosions. Her knives wiped through the Norm-Bots despite their small size, and despite her battlecraze (or perhaps because of it) not a single detail escaped her notice. She was practically invincible, as she dodged blasts and made retributive strikes. She frantically searched as a party of Norm-Bots fell to her energized blades, going after the next party she saw.

Ginger kept a more calm and focused view of the battle. She punched right through a Norm-Bot, grabbing it's energy pack from inside. She allowed a small smirk to creep onto her face as the other Norm-Bots backed away, not wanting to be the next recipients of this treatment. He dashed at one, delivering a decapitating high kick and then bending backwards to avoid a shot. It was, to her, in slow motion, as in one fluid movement she went from the dodge to a deadly punch to the assailant. It flew backwards, smashing and breaking on a massive vat of liquid energy.

The other girls were picking off Norm-Bots with blasters, excluding Gretchen, who merely used her sash to repel the Norm-Bots. She was most definitely not a fighter, and she was mostly there to safely crack any codes necessary. Isabella shot at a Norm-Bot who was flanking Gretchen.

"Sir, I'm getting a notification from Baljeet," Gretchen said. Her voice was obviously worried.

"Oh, no. What's wrong at HQ?" Isabella asked. Gretchen asked the same to Baljeet, but all that came back was the background sound of a blaster being fired. Baljeet never responded. Suddenly, Isabella's wrist communicator came on, showing Elsie.

"Elsie! What's going on at HQ?" Isabella asked.

"Please, be quiet," Elsie whispered, "Me and Adyson are hiding. Baljeet's holding her off."

"Holding off who?" Isabella demanded, being careful not to raise her voice. Milly and Gretchen protected Isabella as she talked.

"Lacey," Elsie responded.

Scene cut...

Adyson had a blaster in her hand and was watching the trapdoor above them, with her teeth bared as she heard Baljeet fumbling with his weapon against the more experienced Lacey. Elsie was putting out the distress signal, and it was thankfully being recieved.

"Lemme go out," she whispered, "Do you want Baljeet to die?" Elsie shook her head, remaining focused on the message to Isabella. "Baljeet is just a squishy intellectual, Elsie. He doesn't stand a chance against-" She was cut off by a howl of pain in Baljeet's voice. "Good-bye, Elsie."

Adyson climbed out of the hidden compartment underneath the floor, and saw Lacey standing over a hopefully-unconscious Baljeet. Then she shot his neck. Adyson's eyes widened in horror as blood flowed from the wound.

"Hey, Lacey!" Adyson yelled, attracting the traitor's attention. "Elsie has enough patients." She shot at Lacey, but Lacey dodged the blast with ease, having had plenty of space and time to react.

"Well, rest assured, he won't need a doctor. All he can do is hope he has fortune with whoever judges him," Lacey said smugly. "You might wanna get on their good side, too."

She shot back at Adyson, who, with her still-healing leg, had slowed reflexes. The blast hit her shoulder as she attempted to dodge, but it was a small enough hit as to be ignored. Adyson returned fire again, now getting behind a crate as cover. She misaimed wildly as she moved, the blast merely hitting a wall.

"Ah, the elite of the Resistance, are you?" Lacey taunted. "You must be having a bad day."

The fire returned, the two girls behind opposite covers. Despite training, neither could land another hit on the other, and the blaster shot on Adyson's shoulder might as well have been a tickle with a feather for all the distraction it gave her.

They each switched cover about 5 times, before Lacey gave a startled yelp. Her blaster's energy pack had been completely expended between the battle with Baljeet and the current one. Adyson confidently came out from behind her cover, with her blaster pointed at Lacey. Lacey backed up with her hands in the air.

"Surrendering? Smart girl," Adyson said, her voice dripping with resent. "But after Baljeet, you won't be leaving this batt- oh!"

Her monologue had been interrupted by a blaster shot to her chest. She feel to her knees clutchign the bleeding wound. Lacey had produced a second blaster from nowhere and fired it quickly enough that Adyson was caught completely by surprise.

"You won't be leaving this battle alive, is, I think, how you intended to finish that sentence," Lacey said, smiling evilly. "I offer my counterargument."

Action! Drama! Suspense! This chapter may or may not have any/all of those! Yes, this is a cliffhanger. Manufactory #1 will be finished in Part 2, coming soon!

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	9. Manufactory 1, Part Two

Isabella hoped that everything at HQ was alright, as they could not exactly pull back now that they were actually inside. They were too close to success. Gretchen had found a safe plugin for her laptop from which to access the floorplan, since Baljeet could no longer help them. Most of the northeast section of the manufactory was cleared in the past half-hour, and Gretchen merely needed to find the controls while they stopped new robots from being completed.

"Sir, I've found them," Gretchen reported proudly. Isabella peeked over the screen, where Gretchen was pointing to a dot.

"Good work. I'll send Katie and Milly over there," Isabella said, before telling them to run off to the point located. they saluted and ran to fulfill their duty.

"That's one fourth being shut down. I wonder how the other teams are faring," Isabella muttered.

Scene cut...

"Irving, stop trying to kill yourself!" Suzy shouted, as Irving once again nearly hit himself with his own nunchuks.

"It's not my fault I have stupid weapons!" Irving protested.

"Yes, it is!" Suzy yelled. Irving stopped to consider that for a moment.

"Oh, yeah, I guess it is. Ah, well," he said, shrugging and continuing to pursue their enemies.

"Hey, Buford, any message from the girls yet?" Django asked, getting back-to-back with his enormous squad commander.

"No," Buford said, as he blasted apart several more Norm-Bots in a single shot.

"Ah, ok. I hope Katie's alright," Django said.

"You and me, both, buddy," Buford said. "Got a crush on her, am I right?"

"Uh- is it that obvious?" Django asked.

"Pft. Romance is everywhere in the Resistance. Phineas and Holly, Isabella and Ferb, Candace and Jeremy... heck, I wouldn't be surprised if Stacy has a crush on Coltrane, and she's not even in the Resistance," Buford said, smiling. "Not to hurt you, but I think Katie may actually have a thing for me. I'm not interested, though, I swear." Django was silent for several seconds, worrying Buford. "You ok back there? Something get you?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Django said at last. "That is news for me."

"Yeah, love's tough," Buford said. Then he narrowed his eyes. "If you tell anyone that we had this conversation, I might forget my promise to look out for all of my team members."

"Ok, my lips are sealed," Django promised. Suddenly, he noticed something. "Oh, hey, the controls! That was easy. Lemme get Irving, and we'll get this place shut down."

Scene cut...

"Phineas, look out!" Holly shrieked, firing a Spider at a Norm-Bot who was about to shoot Phineas.

"Phew! Thanks, Holly! I'd be dead without you!" Phineas shouted gratefully.

The "mad scientists" had not been faring as well as the others. Being closest to the doors, they were able to see the action outside as many members of the Resistance cleaned off the walls and courtyard. So far, though, their mission was unsuccessful, having found no sign of the controls for their section. Luckily, they were at least light on the Norm-Bots to fight.

Ferb's eyes then widened as they walked past the door. This attracted the attention of him teammates, who saw what had caused his horror.

Outside, Perry was landing on a wall, backed by no less than 200 Norm-Bots. On the ground, Balloony was moving from one Resistance member to the next, felling them with lightning speed.

"Phineas. Ferb. Get out of here," Holly said, aiming her Spider gun at Balloony (as much as was possible with his speed) and preparing her dartgun.

"Leave you? I'd rather die," Phineas said, readying his blaster. Ferb merely nodded. The trio prepared to hold off the invading force at the threshold long enough for power to be rerouted. This mission had to succeed.

Scene cut...

Melissa's eyes fluttered. Just a moment ago... ugh, what happened... oh, yeah, Lacey. Lacey beat her. That was shameful to Melissa. She had more training, she should've won. But, wait, she wasn't in the prison cells... she was on the floor of the HQ. Was she dead? She couldn't get her head on straight for several minutes.

"No, I'm not dead," she thought, "I can feel the blood... ugh, this is as bad as P's mauling... is the blood on my neck? Wow, I'm really lucky to have survived that... I hope Elsie's alive to patch me up again..."

She stumbled to her feet, and searched for a blaster. Her own must've been taken. She walked over to a crate and fumbled with it, finally opening it to find a hand-blaster.

"Ok, not the strongest gun, but it should get the job done... now to find Lacey..." she thought.

It didn't take much searching, because she soon heard yells coming from nearby.

"You can't hide forever, little girl!" Lacey yelled, "I'm going to find you and end your miserable life like your friends!"

"Not all of her friends," Melissa thought, narrowing her eyes.

She lined up her shot carefully from her hidden point, but didn't get a shot off as she viewed through the sight a shot coming at her face. She ducked behind the cover, and peeked out to find Lacey firing rapidly in several directions.

"I know you're here somewhere, 'doctor'!" Lacey yelled, "One of these shots is bound to hit!"

"One of them, yes," Melissa said, announcing her presence with several shots which caught Lacey by surprise.

"I killed you!" Lacey said, shocked that Melissa was on her fet and fighting again.

"Reports of my death were exaggerated," Melissa said, smirking at Lacey's surprise.

She continued to fire at the older girl, several of them barely dodged. One hit her hand, causing her to drop her gun. Lacey didn't get a chance to grab a second gun as Melissa continued firing.

"I need to know, Lacey. Why did you betray us?" Melissa asked, not letting up her fire as she spoke.

"Betray? Hah, I never betrayed anyone!" Lacey said, although the laugh was fake.

"Well, then, you've always been our enemy. I don't show mercy to my enemies," Melissa said.

She let a second of distraction get to her, though, and Lacey got close enough to kick Melissa's broken arm. She yelled in pain and dropped the blaster, leaving Lacey to pick it up.

"Ditto," Lacey said simply. She prepared to fire, but cried in pain and fell to the ground unconscious. Behind her... was Elsie, with a taser in her hand.

"E-Elsie?" Melissa gasped. Elsie stared in shock at what she had done, and dropped the taser. She quickly checked for a heartbeat on Lacey.

"She's alive. She'll wake up in an hour or two," Elsie said, "Are your injuries life-threatening?"

"No. They hurt, and she may have further injured my arm, but I'll live," Melissa said, sitting down and holding her arm. "She missed the life-giving parts of my neck, I think."

"Good. I need to check on Baljeet and Adyson. Could you get your sash and tie up Lacey?" Elsie asked.

"You got it, sir," Melissa said. Elsie blushed at being referred to as such, like she was an officer.

Scene cut...

"Phineas!" Holly yelled.

Phineas had just gotten hit for a fifth time while defending the door. They had set up forcefield projectors along the ground by the threshold of the factory, but it remained a large force that they were defending against. Perry and Balloony were thankfully busy with the outside forces, but it was only a matter of time before they were finished.

"I'm... fine... Holly..." Phineas said, gasping for breath. The latest wound was on his left shoulder, and frankly even he was surprised to still be standing.

"No, you're not!" Holly shouted, launching a Spider at the Norm-Bot that had fired on her crush. "Leave now! I still have my Firestorm training; I'll be fine!"

"No, you won't," Ferb said, "Phineas, get help, and avoid battle if possible. We will hold the door." Phineas looked like he wanted to protest, but he couldn't fight his brother. He looked at Holly.

"Be safe, Holly," he pleaded.

"What, you think I'm just gonna drop dead for these guys?" Holly said, smiling. She fired another Spider without even looking (she didn't need to, since the Norm-Bots were so tightly packed).

"Good to hear," Phineas said, stumbling off to warn the other groups.

"Ferb, can you give me the estimates of our survival?" Holly asked, once Phineas was out of earshot.

"I would say somewhere in the vicinity of 5%," Ferb said.

"1 in 20? Not bad," Holly said, reloading her launcher.

Scene cut...

"It's down," Coltrane said, shutting down his section of the manufactory. "Candace, could you contact Isabella and- hey, Phineas, this isn't your quadrant."

"Perry and that balloon robot thing are attacking," Phineas said, "Holly and Ferb are holding off the door. We need to finish this mission and get out of here, but our quadrant is still running with no sign of the controls."

No sooner than he had finished that then Candace was relaying it to Isabella, along with their current progress. Isabella had her activate the emergency flashers and Escape Plan Omega.

"We're retreating? But we're so close!" Phineas said.

"Escape Plan Omega took that into consideration," Candace said, "Finish the mission, and then get out as quickly as possible. It... was my idea."

"How many members are we sacrificing in this plan?" Phineas asked.

"Whoever's already unconscious. We can't afford to stay and rescue," Candace said. The sacrifice actually seemed to hurt her emotionally, unlike usual.

"I see," Phineas said, turning around. "I'm going back to help Holly and Ferb. Contact Elsie, please. She may have a few patients when we get back." Candace didn't have the heart to tell him what had been happening at HQ.

Scene cut...

Holly was fighting Perry, while Ferb duelled with Balloony. So far, the battle was even, but Holly had lost her dartgun and was relying on mundane and easily-deflected blaster shots.

"P, please, you're not evil!" Holly pleaded. Perry made no response, simply continuing his assault.

Across the courtyard, Balloony's defense was proving as inpenetrable as ever.

"We really should find a way to slow you down," Ferb noted, "You might be more easily defeated."

"I wish you luck with that, lifeform," Balloony responded. "The great Heinz Doofenshmirtz built me, before passing my duties on to Mistress Vanessa. I am impervious to all attack forms, known and unknown." Ferb thought about how it was weird that Heinz would simply give away so powerful a robot, even to his daughter. He concluded that Vanessa more likely lied.

Holly continued fighting Perry, until his organic eye widened and he fell unconscious. a sedation needle, shot by Phineas, had lodged itself in his chest. Holly smiled and saluted, already running to join Ferb against the powerful robot.

Ferb welcomed her as they flanked Balloony. He shrugged off her Spiders, though: they were not strong enough to chew through his vastly-superior armor. Holly panicked. Those were her only weapons.

"Resistance is futile," Balloony warned.

"Resistance is what I do best!" a loud voice from behind Balloony bellowed. Balloony flew forward, caught surprised by an explosion from Buford. "We have a score to settle, Balloony!"

"Damage minimized. Armor corrupted to 50% in section 3749. Retreat necessary," Balloony's systems told him, although naturally only he could hear them.

He flipped to his feet and began firing on Buford, the others standing back to allow for the duel. But as quickly as he appeared, Balloony retreated, an open space allowing for inhumanly fast travel to the main gate. Buford yelled in frustration. Then Holly's communicator turned on, with Isabella as the caller.

"Isabella, the threat has been neutralized through quick action. Escape Plan Omega can be terminated," Holly said.

"Oh, thank goodness. Gretchen managed to shut down the manufactory's production, and we're rerouting power. I hope Baljeet's alright, or we may have another obstacle on our path to getting help," Isabella said, "Let's gather the wounded and those that... that _were_ wounded. Head back to HQ with all speed. Elsie told me that Lacey has been felled."

"Great," Holly said, smiling.

Scene cut...

"I have my work cut out for me," Elsie muttered, watching as the Resistance trudged in, exhausted and carrying many wounded soldiers.

"I can't tell if this was successful. The primary objective was successful... but there's so many..." Melissa responded. They were next to each other as the Resistance entered.

"Ah, there's Isabella," Elsie said, "Excuse me, Melissa."

Isabella's face was difficult to read. There seemed to be a mix of anxiety, happiness, and disappointment. When she saw Elsie, she put on a grudging smile.

"Ah, Elsie. We, uh... we brought you patients," Isabella said.

"I've noticed," Elsie said, crossing her arms. "Got any estimates of what I'll be working with?"

"Ferb's chart calculates 32 wounded, 14 critically wounded... and 6 possibly beyond care," Isabella said.

"Hm... well, I've got Baljeet in emergency care. He may be beyond help, though... the wound got him," Elsie said. "Adyson, uh... a sensitive spot was hit, but she will likely recover. And Melissa is standing, but she'll also need care."

"And Lacey?" Isabella asked.

"Melissa's got her tied up. She's still out cold in maximum security, although obviously without a guard," Elsie said.

"I'll get a guard for her as soon as possible. Do you need help with the wounded?" Isabella asked. Elsie nodded, surprised that the question even needed asking. "Right. The Firestorms can help."

_In no time, the wounded had been laid out across the HQ's floor, with the Firestorms and Elsie tending to everyone they could. This was an obstacle that needed crossing before we could run the Dimension Hopper, and Baljeet especially was taken care of. I can only hope the losses are minimized..._

And thus, we end the Manufactory #1 two-parter. More will be explained in chapters to come, such as elaborations on Lacey's loyalties, Perry's fate, the attempt to reach the First Dimension, and the death toll. And, yes, there will be a death toll.

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	10. Pain and Suffering

Elsie was once again with Holly as they treated Adyson and Baljeet minutes later. Baljeet was still alive, but they didn't know if they could keep him that way. Isabella came up beside Elsie.

"So, is he going to be ok?" she asked.

"Tough to say. One thing is for sure: he won't be talking," Elsie answered.

"What does that mean?"

"His vocal cords were shot through. He's probably dying," Elsie reported sadly.

"Oh. Without him, we can't run the Dimension Hopper," Isabella said thoughtfully. "And that's beyond losing Baljeet himself..."

"We're doing all we can," Holly assured Isabella.

Gretchen suddenly ran inside the room, just now having heard Baljeet among the names of the wounded. Her face was ashen when she saw them with him.

"Baljeet? Is he alive?" she asked.

"For now," Elsie said.

Gretchen stepped over, trying to prevent herself from appearing heartbroken and doing a very bad job of it. When she grabbed his wrist to check for a pulse, he wrapped his fingers around her arm, surprising everyone present. His eyes fluttered, opening slightly.

"Don't try speaking, doctor," Elsie warned, "Your vocal cords are out, and it will only endanger your life further.

Baljeet merely pointed at a piece of paper and a pencil on a nearby table. Holly immediately brought it forward. Baljeet began scrawling down a letter in sloppy penmanship, not having the energy to go back and fix things. He gasped for breath several times when writing, worrying the girls. Finally, he folded the latter and put it in Gretchen's hand slowly, giving her hand a kiss while doing so. Then he passed out again.

"I am not likely to survive this ordeal," Gretchen read aloud, "Below are notes for Gretchen to run the Dimension Hopper in my stead. Gretchen, do not mourn my death. I love you." Her voice quavered. "Then there are the instructions. I- I can run the Dimension Hopper with these."

"Good," Elsie said, having been checking Baljeet while she read. "Because we just lost our beloved scientist."

Scene cut...

Lacey was tied up to a simple wooden chair. Isabella paced back and forth, alone in a simple room with a light and a solid steel door. It was the day after the death of Baljeet.

"Now, if I were like Candace, I would be inclined to tie you up to the electric chair," Isabella said. "But I'm not. I am just going to ask: who are you loyal to? Who is P loyal to?"

"I would think it fairly obvious that we're loyal to Vanessa," Lacey said.

"Hm, interesting. Then why did P attack you when you were supposedly guarding Vanessa?" Isabella asked.

"We had different views of how to bring you down. I thought it would be best to take you down from the inside, keeping Vanessa in here until we were ready. P decided otherwise," Lacey said.

"Mhm. And do you know who reactivated the Norm-Bots? Who set Vanessa and her father free?" Isabella continued.

"Me, both times. Heinz's release was an accident, but Vanessa's wasn't," Lacey said.

"And I assume you know that you are responsible for the attempted murder of four Resistance members, of which one was successful?" Isabella asked.

"Yeah. I killed 'Jeet, as I heard," Lacey said, smiling victoriously. "Almost got the girls, too."

"Indeed, you did," Isabella said, "And you realize that we have every reason to kill you, right?"

"Well, duh. I expected a death if this mission failed. May I choose my own method?" Lacey asked.

"Old age is not an option," Isabella said.

"Oh, no, I was gonna ask for poison. Painless, y'know?" Lacey said.

"Dr. Baljeet's death was not painless. Why should yours be?" Isabella asked.

"Oh, my mistake, I thought you were the good cop," Lacey said, giving a hollow laugh. "If not poison, I'll take a shot to the head. Painful, but fairly quick."

"Very well," Isabella said. "I know someone who has a score to settle with you." She turned on her communicator. "Hey, Gretchen? Yeah, your turn. Let me out."

Gretchen and Isabella switched places. Isabella shut the door behind her, locking it. She heard a lot of muffled yelling through the door, and then a blaster shot. When she let Gretchen out, Gretchen had her blaster in the holster at her side.

"Is she dead?" Isabella asked.

"I'm not like her," Gretchen said, "But she may have trouble walking for several months. Possibly permanently. I don't know, or really care."

"Hm. Well, she gets lunch in a few hours, then," Isabella said, locking the door firmly.

Scene cut...

"P's firmly contained?" Isabella asked Phineas and Ferb. They had been pained to be the ones to contain their former pet, but they nodded.

"If he moves another foot towards the door, he'll get a sedation needle shot at his chest. The room is securely rigged," Phineas said.

"Excellent. Is Holly still with Elsie?" Isabella asked.

"Yeah," Phineas answered. "I'm worried, though. Last time I saw her, she was still bawling her eyes out about Baljeet."

"It's hurting everyone. I think some of us are just better at hiding it. Gretchen especially," Isabella said. "Well, and Ginger, of course, but she's good at hiding any emotion."

"Ginger has emotions?" Phineas asked, this apparently being a new development to him.

"Some of us are better at hiding it," Ferb said, rolling his eyes.

"Ah, right," Phineas said, embarassed.

"I'm going to check on Elsie and the patients," Isabella said. "Goodbye, boys. Oh, and Ferb... we'll talk later. In private." Ferb saluted, which was one of the few responses Isabella hadn't hoped for. It was the gesture of a soldier to a commanding officer, not of a friend.

Scene cut...

"Well, Elsie, tell it to me straight. What are the numbers?" Isabella asked. Elsie grimaced.

"Five dead... and three well on their way," she said. "We're doing everything we can to save as many as we can, I swear."

"I know you are, Elsie. Thank you for everything," Isabella said. "Do we have a place to properly bury the dead?"

"Yes," Elsie said, pulling out a datapad with a map on the screen. "North Danville Cemetary. Most people only look in the gated section, but legally, the cemetary's lands stretch into the woods behind that. We have a few members already buried there, headstones and all. They were from the first part of the war."

"It's rather sad that peace was so short-lived that these two battles are regarded as the same war," Isabella muttered.

"So when do you intend to run the Dimension Hopper?" Elsie asked.

"Only when our own soldiers can fight will we bring in untrained reinforcements from the First Dimension. I've seen them fight. They're far too sloppy to fight the improved Norm-Bots," Isabella said.

"I see. I need to go back and deliver water to the wounded. Excuse me, sir," Elsie said, standing up and going back to her makeshift hospital ward.

_At least 3 weeks passed, with no major actions on either side of the war. For this, the Resistance was grateful, since it gave us time to recover. Most patients were dismissed just a day to a week later, but Elsie remained busy._

_The death toll climbed to 7 dead, but the deaths were finished. We recently gave a proper burial, with the largest headstone belonging to Baljeet._

_"Here lies Dr. Baljeet Rai," the headstone said, "Ever-loyal scientist of the Resistance. Died while valiantly defending wounded allies from a more experienced foe. 2000-2011."_

_I had drummed up the courage to talk with Ferb, but we both decided that such feelings were better put on hold until the Second Dimension was safe. THEN we might consider it._

_And now, with most of us back on our feet, the time has come to recieve aid. We are about to travel to the First Dimension!_

Another short chapter, yes. I am going to give a significant chapter to the First Dimension, for two reasons. One, they will need to find a way to remind the originals that the day of AtSD even happened. Two, I intend to bring most of the important Resistance members through, and a long chapter gives time for plenty of jokes as they meet their originals.

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	11. Crossing the Boundaries

What? An author's note before the story? Yes, yes it is. I tried to write "First Dimension Isabella", "Second Dimension Ferb", and so on, but it got tiring. So, I'm going to use the notation that TV Tropes uses: Character-1 is a First Dimension character, while Character-2 is a Second Dimension character. If they do not have a notation assigned to them, they are either being spoken about by a character, or have only one living form (such as Baljeet).

The most active Resistance members were gathered round the bizarre gun-like machine last used many months ago. Gretchen was standing by it, with Baljeet's final letter in her hand. Isabella did not miss the tearstains that smudged the writing on the letter. The instructions, though, seemed to be intact. Gretchen read the instructions in her head for about the fortieth time. Then she began a complex series of commands, switching constantly between the computer and the many levers and buttons on the side of the Dimension Hopper.

"And... behold, the First Dimension!" Gretchen finally yelled. The Dimension Hopper fired, releasing a portal into the air. Through it, they could see a large grassy area with cobblestone walkways. "Isabella, sir, you may begin escorting everyone through. It's much more stable than the first run of the Hopper."

"Great. Thank you, Gretchen," Isabella said sincerely. "Candace and Jeremy, you go through first. Phineas, Ferb, and the Firestorms after them... minus Gretchen, of course. Django and Buford, take the rear with me."

They began walking through the dimensional rift. Gretchen maintained the portal's stability as each group hopped through, and closed it behind them. When they needed to return, they had three handheld "clockwise" guns, similar to the one used by the First Dimension Phineas to escape their doom. Naturally, their own mad scientists had created them.

The Resistance was almost blinded by the sight. They winced at the bright light, and Katie pointed at the sky.

"Why is it blue?" she asked. "And what is that big yellow ball?"

"The atmostphere here is not quite as polluted," Candace explained. "The sky is actually blue normally, even in our dimension. We just can't see it. As for the ball, it's the Sun: the closest star to the Earth."

"Ugh, why are stars so hot and bright?" Katie complained. "And what is all this green stuff on the ground?"

"Grass," Isabella said. "And before you ask, yes, it IS supposed to be green. An atrocious color, but we don't choose our natural world."

"Guh, I hope this mission is quick. I want to go back to our dimension with a pretty, normal purple sky, and no star burning us," Milly said.

"Well, the quicker we find this dimension's twins-" Isabella began, but was interrupted as a flying vehicle flew over the park they stood in. It was flying through use of rapidly spinning blades on the bottom, as opposed to a helicopter's normal top-mounted blades.

"There they are," Ferb said. Noone could see the First Dimension brothers, but noone needed to.

Suddenly, a ray hit the machine. The kids freefell for a few seconds, but they they activated parachutes and flew to the ground. As soon as they touched the ground, several more rays caused the parachutes to disappear.

"Look! Look! Mom!" A red-headed teenage girl was dragging her mother along, and the Resistance members hid.

"And I'm supposed to see...?" Her mother's voice asked.

"B-b-b-but..." the teenager stammered.

"Would you like a ride home, dear? Oh, hello, boys. Having fun in the park?" the mother asked.

"Yeah! We build an upside-down helicopter! It vanished, but we had parachutes on," Phineas said enthusiastically.

"Always with your father's imagination," the mother said, rolling her eyes and walking away.

"Whoever's been listening to our conversation can come out from behind the statue of John P. Tristate," a rough voice said.

The Resistance members stepped from behind the statue, which they had impressively all fit behind. The speaker had been Buford. Candace, Isabella, Baljeet, Phineas, and Ferb were also present. Their mother had left. They lined up with their alternate counterparts, leavin g Jeremy, Django, and the Firestorm Girls behind the lines. The First Dimension's Baljeet was also left out.

"Whoa. This is almost as freaky as Thaddeus and Thor," Phineas-1 said.

"Pft. Those two were on Doof's side in our dimension. I brought them down during my time as leader," Candace-2 said.

"Alternate dimension? Interesting," Baljeet said thoughtfully.

"You remember. You helped us save it," Isabella-2 said. She imitated her introduction to Phineas, in the same accusative voice used. "What'cha doin'?"

"Hey! Noone uses my catchphrase but me!" Isabella-1 responded angrily.

"I am you," Isabella-2 said, rolling her eyes. Isabella-1 thought about it for a bit.

"So, why are you so unstylish, if you are me?" Isabella-1 asked.

"This is armor. You know, for when you can't be a pretty prancing pony every day of your life, and have to fight for freedom instead," Isabella-2 said bitterly. It wasn't because she hated cuteness or innocence. It was because this Isabella reminded her of herself before the Resistance came to be.

"Fight for freedom? Us helping? I don't remember any of this," Candace-1 said, crossing her arms.

"Well, gee, I only saved your collective butts," Candace-2 said. "Can you not remember nearly being fed to a vicious monster?"

"No, no I can't," Candace-1 said. "How about you guys?" All of the First Dimension kids shrugged.

"Hmph. They've probably had their memories wiped somehow," Holly-2 said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. Suddenly, she raised her fist in the air, smiling, and proclaimed, "Phineas, Ferb, I know what we're going to do today!" Both pairs of brothers saluted. "Er, OUR Phineas and Ferb. You guys can't really be too much of a help." The First Dimension brothers stepped back into line.

"Actually, they can be," Isabella-2 said. "Phineas, Phineas, Ferb, Ferb, and Holly, find this dimension's Holly and find a cure. Twice the mad science equals twice the speed, so get cracking."

The five saluted, but before they could depart, Candace-1 put her hand on her brothers' heads.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. You have no right telling my brothers what to do," Candace-1 told Isabella-2.

"Her right is founded in the cumulative two dozen firearms we carry," Candace-2 responded. Candace-1 narrowed her eyes.

"You think I'm afraid of you? You're me. We both know I have no combat experie-" Candace-1 was interrupted by being flipped over Candace-2 shoulder, followed by having a chokehold around her neck.

"I think I have a bit of combat experience," Candace-2 said.

"Alright, you've made your point, Candace. Release her," Isabella-2 ordered. Candace-2 did so, and Candace-1 gasped for breath.

"You... take orders... from Isabella?" Candace-1 asked between breaths.

"I take orders from my commander," Candace-2 said firmly. "Now, then, Flynn-Fletchers, get busy." Phineas-1 and Ferb-1 stood still. "Now!"

"No. You just hurt our sister. Why should we help you?" Phineas asked defiantly.

"Hey, stop resisting! That's my job!" Buford-2 yelled.

"Ok, cut it out," Isabella-2 ordered. "We're here to get allies, not new enemies. Phineas, Ferb - YOUR Phineas and Ferb, I mean - Candace is a bit more violent than the rest of us, and I'm very sorry that she attacked. But our lives literally hinge on your help, so please, just do as I say. Follow my Holly, Phineas, and Ferb, and find your own Holly. Then get to work on some device to restore lost memories."

"Fine. I can't say no to Isabella," Phineas muttered quietly, turning and following the Resistance's mad scientists. Ferb followed silently.

"Hey, why are you doing that to MY Phineas?" Isabella-1 asked impatiently.

"I have no time to petty arguments, Pinkskirt," Isabella-2 said dismissively. "Get whatever you want to take to my dimension. Preferably, your battle armor."

"I don't have any battle armor," Isabella-1 said.

"Then you're gonna die," Isabella-2 said. "Alright, everyone, scatter and find your pretty-happy counterparts."

Scene cut...

Katie was with Milly, stepping cautiously near the DEI building. Ginger had separated from them. They noted about how this DEI building had neither an advanced security system nor the tall extra attachment it had in their dimension. They were oddly let straight in by the security man, who made a remark about the weird costumes they were wearing, and how they had just came in in their Fireside uniforms.

They took the elevator to the top floor, and peeked around a corner. There were their alternate forms, in bizarre orange uniforms. They were talking to Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz. They grabbed hold of their blasters, and when Heinz reached out his hand to grab the girls, they shot at it. He pulled his hand away, alarmed. The girls emerged from behind the corner with their blasters aimed.

"Hurry! You can escape!" Katie-2 called. She reached down for a knife. Katie-1 and Milly-1 looked at each other, before diving behind a potted plant. Katie-2 looked on disappointedly.

"Ok, that's the most pathetic hiding spot ever. He can still see you," she said, putting her hands on her hips.

"Ok, first, yes, I wish I couldn't see then, either. Their cute eyes are forcing me to buy cupcakes. Second, they're hiding from YOU," Doofenshmirtz said. "And why are you holding dangerous weapons like that?"

"Um... cupcakes?" Milly-2 repeated. Milly-1 emerged from the behind the potter plant, holding out a wooden log-like box. She opened it to reveal a half-dozen frosted cupcakes.

"T-t-two dollars a box..." Milly-1 stammered, her eyes on the girls' weapons.

"Calm down, curly, we're not here to harm you. We, well, actually, we're here to collect you," Katie-2 said, putting her blaster and knife in their respective sheathes.

"I wish I had two dollars..." Milly-2 said disappointedly. "I can't remember the last time I even saw a cupcake."

"Uh... free sample if you don't shoot us," Katie-1 offered. She held out a cupcake to each of them.

"Sounds like a good deal to me, seeing as we didn't want to shoot you, anyway," Milly-2 said, grabbing a cupcake out of the box. Katie-2 did the same. The Fireside Girls completed their purchase, and thanked Doofenshmirtz for his contribution. The girls walked to the elevator together.

"So, what's with the crazy uniforms? And selling to mad scientists?" Katie-2 asked.

"These are our Fireside Girl uniforms," Katie-1 explained. "And Doofenshmirtz is a pharmacist, for your information."

"Well, I guess that does explain a few things..." Milly-2 said.

"So, what did you mean by 'collecting' us?" Katie-1 asked.

"Our Isabella told us to gather everyone at the Flynn-Fletcher house. Our Holly, Phineas, and Ferb are working with your Holly, Phineas, and Ferb to build something that will restore lost memories," Milly-2 explained.

"Ah, ok. I thought they'd already done today's activity. Guess there's a surprise around every corner," Katie-1 said, shrugging.

Scene cut...

Ginger was alone. She didn't mind at all, since she had chosen to do so. She searched the city for her counterpart, until she finally found her in a ridiculously bright orange outfit... with Stacy beside her. They were knocking on doors, selling cupcakes in small logs.

"Chotto, jinjā, Walkerview rōdo ga tsugi no hitto mimashou. Saigo no hanbai 6-hako o kōnyū shita sutekina rō fujin o oboete imasu ka?" Stacy said in Japanese.

Ginger-2 groaned. It had been ages since she had spoken Japanese, and she was rusty when it came to the language. From what she could tell, they were going to sell to an old... something.

"Suteishī no ue ni hanguappu suru. Sore wa daredesu ka? Kanojo wa watashi no yō ni miemasu... Anata wa, ichi-shu no anata no atama to me o hosome,-me o katamukete iru baai," Ginger-1 responded, pointing at Ginger-2.

"Listen, I don't have time to speak Japanese with you, and not only because it'll take me forever to remember the simplest phrases," Ginger-2 said, when she noticed that they were talking about her. "I've gotta take you to the Flynn-Fletcher house."

"Sorry, but we're selling cupcakes right now," Stacy said. "And, honestly, it's really fun helping my sis sell them. It's been forever since I was a Fireside Girl."

Ginger-2 froze. She was spending time with her sister? STACY was spending time with her sister? She had a very brief flashback.

-Flashback-

"Play with me?" Ginger asked. Her older sister smiled, grabbing a doll from a small stack.

"What are we going to play, Ginge?" Stacy asked.

"Dun call me Ginge!" Ginger protested loudly.

"Alright, alright, you know I'm teasing, sis," Stacy said. A newscast suddenly came on the TV.

"Breaking news! A hostile takeover of the Tri-State Area has began!" a ridiculously pompous newscaster announced. "All citizens are to remain in their-" Suddenly, he was knocked out of his chair, replaced by a robot with a jovial expression on it's face.

"Dooferalls," the robot completed. "All hail Emporer Doofenshmirtz, new ruler of the Tri-State Area. Please go to the nearest Doofbooth to get your legal papers. If seen by a Norm-Bot such as myself, show us your papers-" The face suddenly changed to a frightening killerbot face. "- Or be destroyed. Have a wonderful Doofensday."

Stacy's expression was one of shock, resentment, and... rebellion? She turned to Ginger.

"Ginger, I would love to play, but I have to go get our papers," Stacy lied. "I'll see you again as soon as I can. Then we can play, like nothing happened."

-End flashback-

"You ok?" Stacy asked, snapping Ginger-2 back into reality.

Ginger-2 nodded slowly. She remained passive on the outside, but she was building up a well of tears. Why couldn't Stacy have come back?

"Sis, I think we should follow her. Walkerview Road isn't far from Maple Street, anyway," Ginger-1 said.

"Good, because I'm not very worried about use of force to take you where I need you to go," Ginger-2 said. "Move it."

Scene cut...

Django and Buford stuck together to look for Django's counterpart. They saw him at an icecream parlor, sketching a couple nearby.

"Alright... and you have a round head..." he said to himself, taking constant glances at his models. Then he noticed Django-2 and Buford-2. "Whoa. Buford, who's this guy?"

"Trust me, you don't know Buford, either. We're Django and Buford from a different dimension. You about done with the masterpiece?" Django-2 asked.

"Uh, yeah. I'm just sketching for now, and I'm gonna do an artistic portrayal later," Django-1 said. "Hm, pretty gloomy outfit, eh?"

"Uh, yeah," Django-2 answered. "I wanted to wear a shirt similar to yours, but the commander said that it wouldn't protect me at all, and besides that, it's like a big tye-dye target saying 'Hey! I'm a doofus! Come and shoot me!'."

"You're from the Second Dimension, aren't you?" Django-1 asked. "Oh, before you ask, yes, I was there. They forgot to zap me with the Amnesia-inator. To be honest, I'm a bit insulted. I mean, my summer schedule's busy with all the art, but c'mon! It's like I'm invisible!"

"Amnesia-inator. Interesting. I guess Holly was right," Django-2 said. "C'mon, we need your help at the Flynn-Fletcher house. It's a rendevous point."

"Ok, one moment," Django-1 said. He turned back to his artwork and put a few finishing strokes on it. "Thanks for modeling, sir and ma'am. I'll give you the artwork when it's completed."

After he took down his canvas, they began walking to the Flynn-Fletcher house together.

"I hope you're not going to get me to tell them about Perry's identity," Django-1 said after walking in silence for a while.

"Oh, no, that's their own job. They're building a machine to make everyone remember the day," Buford-2 said.

"Guys, if they remember that day, Perry will have to leave," Django-1 said. Everyone stopped, and Django-2 turned around to face his counterpart.

"How did you keep this a secret?" Django-2 asked.

"I used my invisibility to my advantage for once. Noone remembers me, so noone thinks I'll do anything against the OWCA," Django-1 said. "It's a bit harder for the main characters of the show."

"First up, don't break the fourth wall. It was funny the first time around, but that was a one-shot joke," Django-2 said. "Break the fourth wall again, and someone will break you. Now, then, I think if we use the contraption, it can be hidden from the OWCA. They don't actually observe the house, do they?"

"Only the backyard," Django-1 confirmed. "But that's where they build everything."

"Then let's move! Don't let them activate it in the backyard!" Django-2 said, alarmed. They broke into a run towards the house.

Scene cut...

Isabella-1 and Isabella-2 were in Isabella-1's backyard. Isabella-1 was in the pool, but Isabella-2 simply stood by the edge.

"So, how's your relationship with Ferb going, without any war to obstruct it?" Isabella-2 asked.

"Um... what?" Isabella-1 asked.

"You and Ferb. You know, romance and cuteness and all that," Isabella-2 asked.

"Uh, I love Phineas. Not Ferb. I mean, sure, Ferb's cute, but he's more in the territory of Gretchen or Holly's tastes," Isabella-1 said, raising an eyebrow.

"Hm, weird. I personally can't see anything interesting about Phineas. And in my dimension, Holly likes Phineas. And Gretchen... liked Baljeet," Isabella-2 said.

"Ok, first of all, Phineas is the cutest boy in the world, and you're an idiot," Isabella-1 said. Isabella-2 reached for her blaster. "I mean, to each their own." Isabella-2 withdrew her hand. "And what do you mean, Gretchen 'liked' Baljeet?"

"Well, as I said, war obstructs romance in our dimension," Isabella-2 said, now sitting down with her knees toward her chin. "Baljeet is dead in our dimension." Isabella-1 gasped. "Yeah, I know. He was killed while defending our medic and an injured girl. The medic tried to save him, but he was pretty much already dying. Gretchen has his final letter. It's the only way we managed to come here at all."

"Wow. Your world is horrible," Isabella-1 said. "Why are you saying all this if you want us, untrained kids, to help you?"

"Well, it's pretty much necessary knowledge," Isabella-2 said. "We are not requesting your help. We NEED your help. If you don't help us, our blood is on your hands. Let's see how well you sleep at night." Isabella-1 stayed silent. "That's what I thought. C'mon, get out of your swimsuit and back into your dress. They're probably nearly done."

Scene cut...

Everyone gathered at the house, finding Django, Django, Buford, Holly, Holly, Phineas, Phineas, Ferb, and Ferb pushing a large contraption into the street, out of view of the local traffic camera and any other devices pointed at the backyard. Once everyone gathered in the street, Phineas-1 stepped in front of the machine to be heard by everyone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, First Dimension and Second Dimension forms, allow me to introduce to you... The REMEMBER-INATOR! If we just turn the dial to correct date, everyone in the TRI-STATE AREA will remember everything that happened that day vividly!" he declared.

"Um, Phineas, maybe you should tone it down a bit..." Isabella-1 suggested.

"Oh, right, sorry," Phineas-1 apologized. "So, the date of the Forgotten Day was... July 18, right?" Isabella-1 nodded. "Great. So we just... turn this dial... and press this button... viola!"

A gas started to pour from many spouts sticking out from the machine, spreading through throughout Danville. Everyone breathed it in, and the First Dimension forms widened their eyes. They looked at Perry, who looked back.

"You're a secret agent," Phineas-1 said.

"Surprise," Django-1 said sarcastically.

"So where are our Second Dimension counterparts?" Adyson asked, pointing at Gretchen.

"In the Second Dimension, duh," Isabella-2 said. "It's tougher this time, though. It's being ruled by Vanessa Doofenshmirtz."

Ferb-1's eyes widened at this revelation. They were asking him to fight Vanessa? How could he do that? Sure, he was none too fond of Heinz, but he loved Vanessa.

"Now, we brought along three Other Dimension-inator handhelds. Candace, Buford, fire 'em up.

Three portals, one shot from Isabella-2 herself, appeared in the air. Isabella-2 waved everyone through. There was some reluctance, but everyone stepped through a portal and found themselves in the Second Dimension.

Scene cut...

"And that's the war up to this point," Isabella said, finishing a long explanation of the war.

Django-1 had his arms crossed, and Phineas-1 was standing beside Ferb-1 and Perry. Perry was standing on two legs with her fedora on. The Fireside Girls and Firestorm Girls were together.

"Well, you have loads of people here. Let's take down Vanessa before it gets any worse," Jeremy-1 said.

"Easier said than done. We scored a massive victory at the manufactory, but the toughest opponents still remain at DEI: Balloony and Vanessa. Plus, there's a good chance that there are a few others we don't even know about," Isabella-2 said.

"That's about 25 people for each difficult enemy," Candace-1 pointed out.

"That's about 10 trained people for each enemy, and 15 pieces of cannon fodder," Isabella-2 countered. "The numbers look to be in our favor, but I've long ago learned to ignore the numbers. We often don't know all of the factors."

"Well, then, what's the plan?" Jeremy-1 asked.

"We have to lure Vanessa out of her safety. Unfortunately, we only know one person who Vanessa hates enough to personally come out and attack," Isabella-2 said. "And, well, we don't get along that well with her."

_It's me again, Isabella! Er, you know, your Isabella. I mean our Isabella. I mean... gah, the one that's been commentating up until now! I hate alternate dimensions!_

_We have finally allies. Now to find a way to rope Stacy into this plan. If this works, we can finish this war in the next month or so. And then we will at long last have peace. But, of course, we have to find Stacy first. We already have a plan for that, of course. What is it? Well, you'll just have to wait and find out, won't you?_

Not much to say here, but thanks to everyone who continues to read, and special thanks to everyone who reviews. We're nearing the climax, but I've got a plan for a series of short stories afterwards.

Oh, yeah. Translations.

**"Hey, Ginger, let's hit Walkerview Road next. Remember the nice old lady who bought 6 boxes last sale?"**

**"Hang on, Stacy. Who's that? She looks like me... if you sort of tilt your head and squint your eyes."**

Remember: Read! Review!


	12. Gone Horribly Wrong

The First Dimension forms of several Resistance members were sitting at a table, discussing the recent unfoldings. Perry stood between Phineas and Ferb.

"Y'know, Holly I didn't know you were an inventor like us," Phineas said.

"Uh... yeah," Holly admitted. "Most of my ideas are crazy, though. I don't think they'll ever actually get built."

"Where are the blueprints kept?" Phineas asked, not missing a beat.

"Uh, on my top shelf, in a cardboard box. But guys, they're insane ideas. Like, settling-the-moon insane," Holly said. "Most of them are built on hypothetical laws of the universe."

"We defy real laws of the universe everyday," Phineas said, grinning. "You have GOT to bring us the prints for settling the moon. I mean, after we started growing grass there, oxygen shouldn't be much of a problem. You'll go down in history."

"I... uh... thanks," Holly said, blushing furiously. Isabella noted this, and let out a soft growl. Holly shook away the red upon noticing that.

"So, I wonder what happened to turn their Perry evil again. I thought it was fried out of him," Gretchen said.

"Well, that's what we thought, anyway," Isabella pointed out.

A knock came at the door. Phineas opened it, and in came the Second Dimension Melissa. Her arm looked horrid, since the kick to it had sent it into even further recovery. Elsie had even considered amputation for all the natural healing it may end with. For now, though, the sling was reinforced by a thick cast and a second sling for extra stability.

"Whoa," Isabella said, stunned. "Melissa, you're a Firestorm Girl?"

"Now and always," Melissa said. "Admittedly, a broken arm puts a damper on my abilities, but I'm confident I'll be back to normal in 6 months, give or take."

"How does your medic feel about that estimate?" Ferb asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh... not so confident?" Melissa said sheepishly.

"That's what I thought," Ferb said.

"Oh, wow, two sentences," Isabella said, genuinely surprised. "How come you're so chatty today?" Ferb didn't answer, instead rolling his eyes.

"Huh, is your Ferb even less talkative than ours?" Melissa asked.

"Wait, your Ferb isn't mute?" Phineas asked. Melissa barely avoided laughing.

"No, no, he's not mute. Just quiet. Demure, reserved, and proper. Like a lady," Melissa said, smirking. "Personally, that's a fate I wouldn't wish on my worst enemies."

"What, is every girl in this universe a fighter?" Candace asked. "Personally, I found being a lady fun for the short time that I acted like one. Exhausting, but fun."

"Most of the youth, yeah," Melissa confirmed. "The adults are useless, though. Of course, not even every person in the Resistance is a fighter. Elsie - our medic, that is - most definitely is not a straight shot with a blaster... or a straight cut with a sword, or really good with any weapon. But I wouldn't underestimate her mama bear instincts. She saved the lives of me and Adyson by tazing Lacey."

"Wow, impressive," Jeremy complimented. "So, have we got a plan for contacting the rogue resistant?"

"Yeah, I came here to let you know who we're gonna be luring out. She's an Asian girl, with sort of ninja-like skills. She's Ginger's sister," Melissa said.

"Are you kidding me?" Candace suddenly exclaimed. "STACY is the rogue resistant?"

"You know her?" Melissa asked, confused.

"Only in our dimension," Jeremy said. "She's Candace's best friend over there. But she's a bit... flighty, if I may." Candace merely nodded.

"Hm. Well, it very much appears that she literally flies over here. We never know where she is, but she swore that she would aid us if we get in trouble," Melissa said. "So, our simple plan to is get captured, have her 'rescue' us, and then convince her to help us out."

"There's a lot of 'if's' in this plan," Baljeet pointed out. "Starting with step one, you have no assurance that after the manufactory, they won't just kill you on sight. In step two, you have no real assurance that she will learn of the capture, or even decide that it's worth it to rescue you. And then in the last step, she may decide not to help, or Vanessa may decide not to attack herself, or she may come with guards."

"Yeah. But we lost our own genius, so if you've got a better plan, spit it out," Melissa said crossly.

"Well, we must think carefully, at least," Baljeet said. "Try to find a way to slow Balloony down. Ensure that the trap is completely set for Vanessa. And, possibly most importantly, make sure that it is Ginger who is captured. Her sister will not be able to ignore her certain doom. Make sure that she is captured, not killed."

"Make it a 'heroic sacrifice' fake-out," Buford suggested. Baljeet raised an eyebrow. "Y'know. Have her group take out all but one Norm-Bot, then have them leave at her request. Make it sound real. The Norm-Bot is no match for her if it tries to kill her, but otherwise, she can easily be captured... most easily by giving up."

"I admit that Buford's plan may actually be a good one," Baljeet said. He was as surprised by those words as anyone else.

"Alright. I'll tell Isabella your plan. MY Isabella," Melissa said. She nodded courteously before walking out of the room.

Scene cut...

"So, just to rebrief, I am the only one being captured?" Ginger-2 asked, as the Firestorm Girls walked towards the DEI building.

"Right. Just don't get knocked out, or it could be hours before you can get the signal off," Isabella-2 answered. "Alright, girls, let's attract some attention."

The Firestorm Girls immediately began advancing, loudly, towards the DEI building. They let off several warning shots, causing a good 30 or so Norm-Bots to flow out from the building. As the Norm-Bots opened fire, Katie grinned and ran ahead with knives drawn. Ginger, being a martial artist by chosen combat style, joined her as they wiped through the Norm-Bots. However, they both kept their heads on, and made a good act of being slowly overwhelmed and pushing back with the other Firestorms.

"22. 20. 16- no, 15." Ginger was silently counting the remaining Norm-Bots. Only a few remained. Then she shouted. "Run! I'll hold them!"

The other Firestorms nodded and scattered. Ginger put a stop to a Norm-Bot before it opened fire on a fleeing Milly, leaving her to face off against three more. She put her hands in the air. It would be quite suspicious to be captured by a lone Norm-Bot. the Norm-Bots switched to their gleeful Norm faces.

"Please do not attempt to escape," one said. "As per new orders, you will be taken directly to Mistress Vanessa." Well, THAT wasn't in the plan. Eh, maybe this would work out.

Scene cut...

Ginger was put in chains and shackles before being led directly to Vanessa. When the Norm-Bot in front of her moved aside, she saw the woman who before she had only heard of, with Balloony beside her. Vanessa had her legs kicked up on the desk, as usual. Her black hair had been let free of the ridiculous hairstyle it was normally in, but it was significantly messier than that of the First Dimension counterpart. She raised an eyebrow as Ginger was led in, and her eyes widened. A certain family resemblance had not escaped her vision.

"Norm-Bots, guard the entrance," Vanessa ordered. "Please, sit. I'm a civil woman."

"I'd rather take orders from a worm," Ginger said viciously. Her face, though, was as impassive as ever.

"Well, your loss. Now that I take a better look at you, I think I recognize your uniform. A Firestorm Girl, right?" Vanessa asked.

"In life and death," Ginger said.

"I'm not going to kill you just yet. I have some questions for you," Vanessa said. She took her legs off of the desk and sat upright. "I would like to start with some questions about Manufactory #1. How exactly did you guys defeat Perry?"

"Our technology is our own. It would be shameful for me to share it with an enemy," Ginger said.

"Consider this more carefully, Firestorm. You are in my territory, surrounded by killer robots. I have at least three types of blasters in the desk in front of me, and I could shoot you at any time. In addition, this entire room is booby-trapped, with all of the controls in front of me. I think it is in your best interest to answer my questions," Vanessa said.

"In ancient Japan, proper samurai had a tactic for if they betrayed their allies. It was commonly known as seppuko," Ginger said. "I will die whether or not I bestow information on you. The only differences are by who's hand, and how many of my allies it would affect."

"Japan, eh? Good, so you know a bit about it. And I suppose you are suggesting that you hold some of it's traditions?" Vanessa asked. She needed to confirm this girls' heritage, because she already knew Stacy's.

"I don't suppose that's illegal?" Ginger asked. "Because I frankly don't care."

"No, no. You see, I have recently taken up a, shall we say, interest in the culture. It becomes necessary to understand other countries in the political business, isn't it?" Vanessa asked.

"And it had nothing to do with your worst enemy?" Ginger asked. Vanessa just widened her eyes and looked at Ginger in shock. "Yeah, yeah, the rogue resistant. Looks like me, also Japanese. I've heard."

"Do you know her?" Vanessa asked bluntly.

"No more than any other Resistance member does," Ginger lied. "Anything that could possibly be called 'family resemblance' is merely coincidence. I have no family." In her eyes, the last sentence, at least, was true.

"Idiot, you're lying," Vanessa growled, leaning forward. "Everyone has a family. Even I have a mom and dad, however disconnected we are. Who is your family?"

"My associates are the Resistance. You will get nothing more from me," Ginger said.

"Well, isn't that just amazing?" Vanessa said bitterly. "What a great and loyal friend you are. I had a great friend, too. And then you captured her. I have no remorse. Good-bye."

Vanessa's finger pressed a single button, and Ginger vanished.

Scene cut...

"Accident Prone Sweetwater, right?" Adyson-1 said. She was sitting in the hospital area beside her counterpart, attempting to cheer her up. "You must get it from me."

"On a technicality, we get it from each other," Adyson-2 responded. "Alternate dimensions are crazy."

"Y'know, I agree. So, what's different about us?" Adyson-1 asked.

"Well... do you like boys?" Adyson-2 inquired. Adyson-1 faked a gag. "Ok, so neither of us like boys. Um, do you add sarcasm to your group regularly?" Adyson-1 nodded. "Do you like fruit punch?" Adyson-1 nodded. "Is strawberry your favorite?" Adyson-1 nodded. "Ok, what DOES separate us?"

"Uniforms," Elsie said, smiling. he had just stepped into hearing range. She set a glass of water beside Adyson-2. "Orange is a bit gaudy, dont'cha think?"

"Yes, I do. I prefer red, so I always keep my headband on," Adyson-1 answered. Adyson-2 groaned. That was another thing in common.

"Have the other Firestorms returned yet?" Adyson-2 asked.

"Yes, they have. Which means we can expect Stacy to begin a breakout in an hour or two. She works fast," Elsie said.

"Just how many sides are there in this war?" Adyson-1 asked.

"Three that we know of. There's us, there's Stacy, and there's Vanessa and her minions," Adyson-2 answered. "Maybe more. Who knows?"

Scene cut...

Stacy was in the former Hirano house. It was an abandoned wreck. There were dust and cobwebs coating the furniture, and the cabinets were empty. Stacy suspected that Ginger had sacked the house in search of anything to help her before she left it.

She entered Ginger's room. There were a few posters on the walls, and several dolls lined up on the bed. It was, for the most part, neat and orderly. She briefly wondered why Ginger would leave all of her possessions in the abandoned house.

She next found her own room. It was, like the rest of the house, trashed. Stacy was most stunned, though, by a large red crayon writing on the wall, faded with age. It said nothing more than "Stacy I scared come home plez". It was in Ginger's handwriting from when she had left. Stacy thought it was perfectly within Ginger's nature to leave a message where Stacy frequented.

Stacy left the house, and closed the door. She took out a small laser pointer, and burned a large X on the door. This house would never again be used.

She was completely unaware of her sister's capture.

Just what happened to Ginger? Why was Stacy not alerted? What happens next? Well, you'll know with the next chapter. (And, yes, the Adyson scene was mostly for laughs and giggles.)

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	13. Rescue

Ginger felt pain as the faulty teleporter zapper her. She was brought nonetheless to the execution chamber. There was no Goozim nearby, but before she had time to think, Balloony popper in behind her. He knocked her away with a punch to the back of the head. She fell face-first onto the ground. She spat dirt from her mouth and stood up. Balloony did not choose to use his robotic weapons this time, instead taking two staves off of his back. They switched on, revealing crescent blades on all four ends. Suddenly, Vanessa appeared on the enormous screen.

"Ah, good, you two both made it. To be honest, that teleporter was completely untested. I was worried that you might have dropped into the lava. THAT wouldn't be much of a show, now would it?" Vanessa asked. "Firestorm, you have one last chance to give me the information I want."

"No," Ginger said defiantly.

"Geez, you resistants are gonna get yourselves killed. Starting with you, of course. Balloony, show her Fighting Style A," Vanessa ordered.

Balloony practically teleported to Ginger's side. His double-edged staves twirled in a deadly dance as he surrounded her singlehandedly, using his inhuman speed to his advantage. He delivered blow after blow, making sure not to use the blades themselves. Despite her training, she could barely deflect a few of them, and most simply hit her. Her lack of weaponry put her at a further disadvantage. She was on her knees in pain before Vanessa ordered Balloony to stop and pull back.

"We have fighting styles for every letter of the alphabet," Vanessa said smugly. Ginger merely glared back at the screen. She would endure this. Torture would only last so long.

Scene cut...

"Do we have any word from Ginger?" Isabella-2 asked Gretchen-2.

"No, sir. There's been no signal that Stacy has rescued her," Gretchen-2 reported. "Don't be too worried, though. Vanessa has no reason to kill her yet."

"Alright. Keep monitoring it, Gretchen," Isabella-2 ordered. Gretchen-2 saluted, and Isabella left.

Ferb-2 raised an eyebrow as she entered the workshop. Isabella-2 almost never entered this area. It was, after all, a place prone to explosions.

"Hello, sir. Do you need anything?" Phineas-2 asked.

"No, I'm fine. What'cha doin'?" Isabella-2 asked. She didn't use the catchphrase anywhere near as much as her counterpart, so Phineas-2 chuckled at it.

"New programming," Ferb-2 said vaguely.

"Uh, for what?" Isabella-2 asked, perplexed.

"Perry," Phineas-2 answered. "We're going to attempt to overload his programming with some of our own. Sort of like a virus, but it helps him instead of hurts him."

"Hm. Nice plan, but how do you intend to deliver the program to him? He's not exactly in the mood to stay still," Isabella-2 asked.

"The usual sedation needles. So, yes, we'll have to install it fast," Phineas-2 said.

"Alright, but make sure it actually works before letting him out. How are the First Dimension guys coming along on the Slow-Go?" Isabella-2 asked.

"I think they're doing well. We've only heard a single tiny explosion from behind their doors," Phineas-2 said.

"Good. This is all coming along nicely. Now if we can just get word from Ginger..."

Scene cut...

"Fighting Style D!" Vanessa yelled, her voice constricted with complete fury. Ginger had still not said a word. In fact, she hadn't made a noise except for when her ankle snapped rather loudly.

"Mistress Vanessa, at what point should I kill this lifeform?" Balloony asked.

"When she's no longer useful! Now do what I said!" Vanessa snapped.

"Yes, Mistress Vanessa," Balloony said dutifully.

Balloony leaped over Ginger's head, delivering a heavy blow to her skull. She gritted her teeth as she fell to the ground again, and rubbed her head gently. She attempted to trip Balloony, but like other offensive attempts, he merely moved out of the way before leaping back to continue the assault. Her ankle hurt like crazy as she leaped to her feet again, but she refused to show pain. She refused to show weakness. She got back into a useless defensive stance as Balloony attacked her, her arms merely being the recipients of pain befote they were knocked to her sides, leaving her open to devastation.

Suddenly, Balloony's attention was focused upward, and he avoided a large shot from a Norm-Bot that was, oddly, aimed at him. The Norm-Bot continued to attack Balloony, making sure to fly above the lava, well out of Balloony's reach. Balloony swapped out weapons for his gun and sword, returning fire. This Norm-Bot saw it coming, though, and flew out fo the line of fire, behind one of the many gnome statues.

"Balloony! What's going on?" Vanessa yelled.

"A Norm-Bot has opened fire. It is quite intelligent, even for your improved models. I cannot hit it," Balloony answered.

"Gar! Finish it quickly! The Firestorm will get up any time now!" Vanessa ordered.

"Meh, what's the point? I'll just get knocked down again," Ginger pointed out. "Don't worry, I'll just sit here and wait for the torture to continue. No point in engaging a foe that I obviously cannot defeat alone."

"Well, at least you have some measure of sense. Do you wish to answer questions while in your moment of clarity?" Vanessa asked, attempting a calm attitude.

"You'll have to kill me, ressurect me, and then repeat those steps before I even consider it," Ginger said firmly.

"The killing, at least, can be arranged," Vanessa said.

Scene cut...

Stacy casually shot down a DEI Norm-Bot guard. Her alarm had alerted her to a citizen having been thrown in the cells, probably for some minor crime like talking back to a Norm-Bot. She strode right inside after hacking the doors open with a heavily modified MP3 player (in fact, it didn't even play music anymore). The guards behind the door were scrap metal in seconds. She yawned. This was far too easy.

She halted when she heard shouting coming from the television above the door. She looked over her shoulder. It displayed, for all DEI employees, the lava chamber. Balloony was there, fighting a Norm-Bot. Vanessa was on the screen in the chamber, pulling her hair in frustration. And her sister was sitting on the floor. Several large bruises were across her body, but she remained emotionless.

Stacy's priorities were changed. The citizen was in no immediate danger, but Ginger definitely was. Luckily, she knew practically every secret passage in the building. She ran to a ventilation duct and ripped the cap off. She dove in, using her thankfully athletic body to squeeze through. She knew quite well that this wasn't a ventilation duct forever. It would open out into a full-size walking space very... soon...

She rolled into the open, drawing her blaster midroll. There were no guards, but nearby was someone she did not expect. Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, alive, well, and with a remote in his hand. He was sitting against a wall, watching a tiny video screen.

"Hands up, doctor," Stacy demanded, putting her blaster to his head before he noticed her.

"You're the Hirano girl, aren't you? The 'rogue resistant'?" Heinz asked, looking up with slight fear in his single eye. His attention immediately returned to the screen, as he sharply pushed left on the remote control. It looked quite similar to a video game controller, now that Stacy paid attention. "Don't kill me, unless you want to take over defending this Firestorm Girl."

"That Firestorm Girl is my sister," Stacy said. "You'd better not consider hurting her. Just what are you doing, anyway?"

"Look, I'm not evil anymore!" Heinz promised. "I'm DEFENDING your sister! I've taken control of a Norm-Bot and I'm distracting Balloony. Wait, how did you even get in here?"

"I know your building as well as you do, doctor. Now, you distract Balloony for as long as possible. When my sister is safe, I'm going to turn your Norm-Bot into scrap metal and then take you in for questioning. You will cooperate. Do you understand?" Stacy said.

"Perfectly well. Now hurry, a Norm-Bot is very, very inferior to Balloony," Heinz warned. Stacy smiled. At least she had an ally in this mission, however undependable.

Stacy left Heinz alone, and walked through the cavern-like piping that connected many different rooms. It didn't lead directly to the lava chamber, but she could easily get in from where it did lead. Every so often, she would glance at her watch nervously. For once, she was actually concerned about the time. She ducked into another fake ventilation duct, this one leading to a room connecting directly to the lava chamber. She shot at the few Norm-Bot guards at the door from inside the duct, effectively destroying them before they even knew she was there. Once she had pushed the cap past her, she stepped over to the solid steel, 6-inch wide door that was her last obstacle. She merely smiled. All it required was a little hacking into the opening mechanism beside it to open the door, and Stacy was charging across a bridge to the rock platform.

Ginger noticed her quickly, but Balloony was still too distracted. Right now, she was out of Vanessa's line of sight. Ginger merely raised an eyebrow and shook her head. It had no effect, as Stacy shot Balloony in the back. It was one of few attacks that had ever hit him, but his armor absorbed it like it was a punch from a child. Balloony disengaged the Norm-Bot, having recognized the intruder as his Mistress' #1 enemy... and one of the few people that, despite a lack of actual emotions, he found annoying as well.

"Balloony! What's going on no- GAH! It's her!" Vanessa screamed. "KILL HER!"

"Yes, Mistress Vanessa," Balloony said.

He slashed at her with his sword, but merely swung through air. He next opened fire multiple times with his guns, but she pulled off several acrobatics to dodge it. They were fancy enough that Ginger was sure that Stacy was merely showing off. Ginger, for her part, stayed sitting in her position. There was nothing meaningful she could do to help with her many injuries slowing her down, and besides, Stacy had obviously come to save her, not the other way around. She simply put her hand to her wrist, and sent out a signal that all other Firestorms would recieve.

Scene cut...

"She's being rescued at last!" Katie-2 cheered. She was with Buford-2 and Django-2, who both raised an eyebrow. Neither of them had known about the plan. "Oh, sorry. Stacy's saving Ginger. You know how she got captured earlier? That was fake."

"So, I guess we'll need to get ready to intercept her?" Django-2 asked.

"That's right. C'mon, they're probably already organizing by the entrance," Katie-2 said enthusiastically. They followed her as she skipped towards the entrance, where the other Firestorm Girls, as well as their counterparts, were getting their weaponry in order.

"Pinkskirt, do you guys have any practice at all with weaponry?" Isabella-2 asked.

"We have patches for Archery, Rifle, BB Guns, Shotguns, Laser Guns... what model are these?" Isabella-1 asked.

"You'll each be handling basic handblasters. It's a fairly weak model, so that you don't misfire and kill us," Isabella-2 answered.

"Hey, we're not stupid. We can handle ourselves," Adyson-1 said.

"The other Gretchen will be observing from here, and she has given me Baljeet's headset with which to communicate," Gretchen-1 said.

"Hey, can we join?" Buford-2 asked Isabella-2.

"Yeah, sure. Just don't make our presence known before I tell you to," Isabella-2 said.

"Great. C'mon, Django, we can go ahead of the girls," Buford-2 said. Django-2 waved and followed his large friend.

Scene cut...

"Stand still for your execution," Balloony ordered.

"Yeah, right," Stacy responded. She flew into the air and kicked Balloony's arm, but it caused no damage at all.

"Last time he was hit with a particularly large blast, the armor in his back was corroded. It was three weeks ago, but it's a good chance," Ginger suggested from her sitting position.

"Oh, gee, thanks for the help," Stacy said sarcastically.

"Glad to be of assistance," Ginger returned, with just as much sarcasm.

There was no point in attempting to circle Balloony, with his superior speed and having heard Ginger's "help". She was, therefore, thankful when Heinz began firing again. It split Balloony's attention two ways. Stacy wished he didn't have two arms. It would have been easier to dodge his sword if he couldn't run the entire platform in half a second. She remained on the defensive, only letting loose a blaster shot when she had a second's respite from Balloony's continuous attacks. She knew that if Balloony had any serious exploitable weaknesses, Heinz would likely have capitalized on them by now. He seemed to be truly invincible.

"Ginger, we're getting out of here," Stacy said. "Doc, cover our retreat!" She had no idea that Heinz could not hear through the screen.

She ran and picked up Ginger clumsily, but Ginger merely gritted her teeth at the fresh wave of pain. Then Stacy yelled in pain herself. She had been shot in the back by Balloony, burning a hole in her armor. Then she took five more from the rotating blaster. She didn't let go, though, and began running towards the door with her enstranged sister in tow. Ginger could tell whenever Stacy got shot by the winces, but no number of shots slowed Stacy down. Finally, Balloony appeared at the door's bridge, blocking the only exit. Stacy screamed in rage, and charge Balloony head-on. She let loose a wild-aimed volley of shots, distracting Balloony enough for Ginger to twist in Stacy's grasp and kick Balloony with her injured ankle. he was pushed back a few inches, dangling him precariously on the edge of the stone platform.

Stacy, without letting go of Ginger, delivered a roundhouse kick to Balloony. He was knocked off of the edge of the lava, but in one last attack, he slashed at Stacy's abdomen with his sword. Then he fell to his final demise.

"NO! YOU-" Vanessa screamed, but Stacy shot the screen, destroying the connection.

She fell to her knees, clutching her gaping wound. The shots in her back and the slash on her chest were horribly, horribly painful. She was slipping out of consciousness even as Ginger stepped over and slowly dragged Stacy out of the chamber.

Scene cut...

"She's waking up," a small female voice said.

"Stacy. Stacy. Stacy," Ginger's voice echoed. Stacy fluttered her eyelids, finding Isabella-2, Ginger-2, and Elsie around her.

"Ginge? Wha- what's going on? I had a horrible dream..." Stacy said. She then realized how odd it was to be in the Resistance HQ. "It wasn't a dream at all, was it?"

"No, it wasn't. The Slow-Go made for Balloony will not need to be used on him at all, as Ginger reports," Isabella-2 said.

"She also told us that you were ridiculously brave," Elsie added. "Turning your back on Balloony? I mean, that takes a lot of nerve. And don't worry, none of your vitals were harmed beyond repair. Your lung came very close to being punctured, though."

"Buford and Django found Ginger dragging you out of DEI and helped you make it to the rest of us," Isabella-2 said. "Now, Elsie, I think that if she's conscious, we can leave Ginger alone with Stacy." Ginger-2 silently pleaded for them not to, but Isabella-2 ignored it. She and Elsie left, leaving the somewhat-sisters alone.

There was a long silence. Neither of them knew about what to say. Then, in a single show of emotion, Ginger-2 cried. With noone but Stacy to hear, she cried. Tears streamed onto Stacy's clothing, and Stacy could only hold Ginger-2's head close to her in a sign of affection.

"St-Stacy?" Ginger-2 said, between sobs.

"Yes, Ginger?" Stacy asked.

"I... I forgive you."

_Well, how sweet. What, eavesdropping? No, we weren't eavesdropping, I swear! We... well, I might have heard a bit when I wandered a little too close to the curtains that held the two reforged sisters in privacy. But who cares? It's so good to hear that they love each other again! And now we just have to convince Stacy to let us use her at bait._

_... Why am I suddenly feeling morally obliged to find a different plan?_

And the Hirano sisters have been reunited _as_ sisters. I've been planning this for some time now. I needed to make the reuniting a truly heartwarming moment, and I think I did well. But how do YOU think I did?

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	14. Plot holes? What plot holes?

Phineas-2 looked through the clear, 6-inch-thick, blaster-proof window. Perry the Platyborg was in a corner, and glared menacingly when he noticed he was being watched. Phineas-2 wasn't phased. He put on a helmet, attaching it to the rest of his full-body armor. Then he opened the door quickly, slamming it behind him before Perry could escape. The playborg flew at him, maces whirling viciously. Phineas-2 stood still, and waited. Sedation needles flew from about twenty hidden holes, with four of them puncturing his former pet's skin. Perry's eyes instantly closed, sending him into a deep sleep.

Phineas-2 immediately set to work. With a screwdriver in hand, he opened up Perry's chest plating. There were circuits running all across his body. He looked for a few minutes for one circuit chip in particular. He found it at last, but it was dangerously close to a few of the life-support systems.

He cautiously took his screwdriver and lined it up with the edge of the circuit, attempting to use the flat tip like a tiny crowbar. It easily took five minutes just to pry it out without touching any vital circuits, but he succeeded at last. He took out a brand-new circuit chip, designed by himself and Ferb-2, and slowly positioned it into the empty spot. He pushed it in and took a step back. Now he just had to wait for Perry to wake up.

Scene cut...

"How long... how long..." Stacy-1 said, groaning.

She had been left in the First Dimension. And for the past two weeks, Dr. Hirano had been in what could only be a depression. Stacy had come clean about where everyone was, knowing that her mom now remembered the Forgotten Day. But knowing where they were had only made her more anxious, considering that it was a dangerous dimension. The other moms had similar reactions.

"... Mysterious Force, I know that I probably don't pray to you enough, but could you please bring everyone back home?"

Scene cut...

Gretchen-2 stepped into Lacey's cell with her blaster in her holster. She was carrying a tray of food.

"Oh, hello, Gretchen," Lacey said sweetly.

"Don't bother," Gretchen-2 growled. "I hate noone more than you. I just have your lunch."

"Fine, fine. Brought me a blaster, too?" Lacey asked, standing up and taking the tray of food. Gretchen-2 placed her hand on the gun, watching Lacey suspiciously. "Pft, just kidding. I can't take on a Firestorm right now. Too hungry. Two meals a day doesn't go far, y'know?"

"Oh, you're suffering. You poor thing," Gretchen-2 said sarcastically. "Do you know how many times I've been tempted to just kill you outright? I'm sure the place you'd end up is much more unpleasant than this cell."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. 'Vanessa's evil'. 'Betrayal is immoral'. 'Aren't you ashamed of yourself?'. I just don't care," Lacey said, taking a bite out of a sandwich afterwards. She swallowed before continuing. "It's not betrayal when you're always on the same side. And considering that I fully intended to face death for my friend, I think my morals are pretty top-notch."

"You're on a very dark end of the gray morals," Gretchen-2 said, crossing her arms.

"Maybe I am, maybe not. All comes down to point of view," Lacey said. "You're an enemy, so you see me in the darkest light possible. Vanessa's my ally, so she would see this as a brave sacrifice. And, let's face it, Candace isn't that paladinish, either."

"While we're on the subject of Candace, is there any reason you pretended to be her friend?" Gretchen-2 asked.

"Pretend? Nah. She's a cool gal," Lacey said. "I wouldn't kill her unless it was a choice between her and Vanessa, actually. Of course, she's probably one of the best fighters in the Resistance, so I probably wouldn't even win in that situation. I mean, your medic defeated me, for crying out loud."

"And you wanted to kill Elsie because...?" Gretchen continued.

"Because you guys are useless without her. Face it, you guys take a lot of deadly injuries. Without her, your medical know-how is limited. It's basically a simple case of 'shoot the medic first'," Lacey said, shrugging. "I think that's one reason so many of you were willing to fight to save her. Besides, of course, loyalty."

"That may be the only virtue you understand," Gretchen said.

"Then you underestimate me," Lacey said. "Thanks for the lunch. It's always more filling than dinner, since I get absolutely no breakfast. Bye, Gretchen."

Gretchen left, with a scowl on her face. Lacey was evil, that much was for sure. But what discomforted her was that she was evil _and intelligent_.

Scene cut...

Ginger-2 had not left Stacy's side in the 2-week period, but part of that was attributed to Elsie forcing them to stay while she cared for them. Adyson-2, meanwhile, was mostly recovered, and was only told to "not go on any more stupidly heroic suicide missions".

Isabella-2 had spent the weeks contemplating carefully the actual plan for Vanessa's final defeat. Now that Balloony was defeated, she thought that a storm of the DEI building may actually be possible with the numbers they had. Of course, it would likely be just as easy to lure Vanessa with Stacy, now that she was furious about Balloony. Finally, when she had decided on a course of action, she went to the hospital area to speak with Stacy.

"Hello, Stacy. Hello, Ginger," Isabella-2 said, walking in to find the two lying side-by-side. they sat up and looked at her quizzically. "Stacy, we have a plan to finally defeat Vanessa."

"Great," Stacy said, suddenly very interested. "Care to spill it?"

"Yes, because it involves you. I contemplated a direct attack, but I think that it's best that Vanessa fights us on our turf. You are, as you know, her #1 enemy," Isabella-2 began. Stacy smiled. "If she sees you, she will try to kill you. And, even without Balloony to back her up, she will try to do it personally in the most likely scenario."

"So, I'm bait?" Stacy asked.

"Yes," Isabella-2 confirmed.

"Sure, I can do that," Stacy said, shrugging.

"Just like that?" Isabella-2 asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'm ok with it. I can still defend myself quite well. The one you need to clear it with is Elsie," Stacy said, smirking.

"Easier said than done," Elsie's voice said. Isabella-2 jumped and turned around, hand on her blaster. "Do I need to taze you? Hands off the gun, sir. Now, then, we're going with the original plan, yes?"

"Uh, yeah," Isabella-2 said sheepishly. For all her caring, Elsie had a scary amount of devotion to keeping the wounded safe.

"Hmph. Personally, I am against that. But if Stacy says she can still fight decently-" Elsie began.

"No, I can fight well," Stacy interrupted.

"Fine. If she can fight well, I see no reason to argue with my superior. Go along with it, I suppose," Elsie said, rolling her eyes. "Stacy, does your back still hurt? I can give you some more pain reliever."

"Yeah, thanks," Stacy said gratefully, taking a pill from Elsie's hand. "How do you get these things to taste like candy?"

"Does it really matter?" Elsie asked. Stacy decided not to pursue the question.

Isabella-2 left the scene, relieved at how easily the plan had been agreed to.

Scene cut...

The Firestorm Girls (minus Ginger-2) gathered in the practice room, where various Norm-Bot-shaped targets hovered around. Isabella-2 had called them.

"Alright, girls," Isabella-2 said. "We are, fortune provided, ending the war this weekend." A loud cheer rose from everyone except Katie, who was significantly less enthusiastic. "Stacy has agreed to the original plan. If she brings reinforcements, we will set up an ambush to pick them off. Any particularly difficult enemies - that is, anyone but Norm-Bots - should be left alone until she arrives at the HQ. Gretchen, are all traps in working condition?"

"Yes, sir," Gretchen-2 answered.

"Good. Defense shouldn't be an issue, then, no matter how many she brings," Isabella-2 said, She visibly relaxed, seeing that everything was going according to plan. "Alright, girls, at ease. Say, Katie, have you... you know, resolved things yet?"

"No," Katie-2 said, sighing. "I know you and Ferb are probably knee-deep in love despite your 'no relationship' promise, but Buford is really a stupid brute when it comes to that stuff."

"Buford? I thought you liked Django?" Holly-2 said, perplexed.

"Nah, we're just old friends. I mean, sure, he's awesome, but he's just... not exciting enough, you know?" Katie-2 said, shrugging.

"Blegh. I'm sure glad I don't like boys yet," Melissa said. Adyson-2 smiled. They were so very much alike that she never wondered why they made such good partners.

"I'm surprised we're talking about boys," Adyson-2 said. "'At ease' doesn't mean the war's over, y'know."

"It's an easy subject to talk about, simple as that," Isabella-2 said. "Anyway, I'll be arranging the other resistants. You guys can do what you wish."

Scene cut...

Phineas-2 stepped out of the cell, with a certain half-cybernetic platypus behind him. He casually walked into the main room, and suddenly yelled.

"Hey, everyone! Ferb and I did it! Perry's good again!" he shouted. Isabella-2 had just been entering the room, and her eyes widened.

"Are you sure the chip is functional, Phineas?" she asked, hand on her blaster.

"Am I dead?" Phineas-2 asked, rolling his eyes. "Is P attacking anyone at all? The chip works."

"... Fine, fine. But keep an eye on him," Isabella-2 said. "Even if the chip works, it's as likely as anything else to malfunction."

Scene cut...

_What? No, there's nothing more. Well, besides my monologue, obviously. First of all, no, I still don't trust P as far as I can throw him. "The evil's been fried right out of you!" Sure it has, Phineas. If he so much as looks at a Resistance member funny, he will find a sedation needle in his back. I am taking no chances._

_Obviously, we are now preparing for the hopefully final battle. I wonder just what Vanessa has in store for us._

This chapter was purely for tying up a few loose plot threads. I expect two more chapters to go into this story. Yep, just two. After that, be on the lookout for a series of ficlets.

I have placed a poll on my profile. This poll WILL influence the next story, so I encourage ALL of my readers to make choices. Yes, even if you're not usually interested in polls and reviews.

Remember: Read! Review! VOTE!


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